Depression

Navigation

DEPRESSION

Anxiety	Depression	Anger
Substance Dependency	HIV/AIDS	Eating Healthy
Emotional Intelligence	Living Purposefully	Keeping Active

"My momma always said Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you gonna get.”

This is one of the most memorable quotes from the hit movie Forrest Gump. Life, like a box of chocolates is loaded with surprises, some of them delightful and some are downright disappointing. This shows that as individuals, we don’t have control over what life has in store for us, the only thing we have control over is how we deal with what it throws at us.

Sometimes good things happen that give us joy and make us happy. At the same time, bad things such as sickness, death of a loved one, organization restructurings or retrenchments may lead us to feeling sad. Sadness is a normal reaction to life’s setbacks and struggles. It only becomes an area of concern when this mood doesn’t seem to go away and start affecting people’s daily functioning and enjoyment of life.

Many of us use the word “depression” to explain these kinds of feelings, but depression is much more than just sadness. Some people describe depression as “living in a black hole” or having a feeling of impending doom. However, some depressed people don't feel sad at all—they may feel lifeless, empty, and apathetic, or men in particular may even feel angry, aggressive, and restless. Whatever the symptoms, depression is different from normal sadness in that it engulfs your day-to-day life, interfering with your ability to work, study, eat, sleep, and have fun. The feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, and worthlessness are intense and unrelenting, with little, if any, relief.

http://www.helpguide.org/mental/depression_tips.htm