Recognizing and Understanding Depression

What is Depression?

Depression refers to changes in your mood that often lead to a disruption in your everyday activities, eating and sleeping habits, energy level and your outlook on things. When you are depressed, you may feel angry, sad, hopeless, and lonely.

Everyone feels sad sometimes; kids, adults and teenagers. There are days when you may feel angry, tired, and lonely. When the days you feel this way out-number the days you feel happy, you may need a little extra support to feel better. You probably feel great after winning the big game or getting invited to the big party. When you argue with you best friend or fail an important test, you may feel angry or down. We all go through changes in mood depending on what's going on each day. The bad moods usually pass. When you are depressed the unpleasant moods stick around longer. You may not feel like going out with friends anymore, playing your favorite game, or even getting out of bed in the morning. There are things you can do to help make yourself feel better and to get back to all those things you love to do.

When you are depressed, you have a hard time seeing the positive in things. Your feelings and thoughts become more negative and this may lead to unhealthy behaviors.

The symptoms of depression can build up and become overwhelming to deal with alone. They can affect how you function in school, at home, with friends & with family.

Nearly every day, I have experienced...

o Feeling sad, empty, hopeless
o Eating more or less than usual
o Having a hard time falling asleep
o Having a hard time waking up
o Feeling tired
o Participating in favorite activities less often
o Gaining or losing weight
o Snapping at people for no reason
o Crying more than usual
o Neglecting personal appearance
o Hyperactivity
o Physical aches and pains
o Forgetting appointments, assignments, routines
o Saying I am not good enough
o Feeling bad about myself, having negative thoughts about myself
o Taking more risks (dangerous behavior)
o Thinking I have nothing to look forward to
o Withdrawing from family and friends
o Using drugs or alcohol
o No longer hanging out with friends
o Having problems in school (grades, paying attention in class)
o Injuring myself
o Having thoughts to hurt or kill myself

Depression can look different for each person. You may feel irritable instead of sad; or yell instead of cry. There's no right or wrong way to feel depressed. It's important to understand what your personal cues and signs are in order to help you deal with your moods and emotions. After understanding your signs and symptoms, reach out to a professional for support.