Life Changing Mindset

What's the difference between clinical depression that needs treating, and just regularly being depressed?

I'm often depressed, and i just wondered what the difference is between just being depressed, and clinical?

At what point does depression become depression?

Public Comments

1. Being depressed is a normal emotion that everyone goes through, but when you start being depressed all the time and it starts affecting your life, and people start to notice (like sleeping all the time or not at all, eating more or less, not doing the things you used to love, suicidal attempts or thoughts, or even when it becomes physically painful) then thats clinical depression when you should seek out help from someone or a professional and get some sort of treatment

2. I believe it is the line between being sad, just feeling crappy and giving up on hope and wanting to kill yourself.
clinical depression takes more than just some happy pills and exercise to get over. you will need to see a therapist, and maybe even be hospitalized.

3. if im not wrong, after 2 consecutive weeks of being depressed, if it doesnt go away then you need to go to a doctor or to therapy to see whats wrong cause it may turn into clinical depression

4. being sad about something is not the same as depression, although many people say "im depressed". feeling down is a normal response to a bad day, a fight with someone, failing a test. within a few days or a couple of weeks, the sadness dissipates-every day you are less sad.

Depression on the other hand is a medical condition. it interferes with ones ability to function normally to varying degrees depending on the severity of the depression. those who suffer from it don't normally say "I'm depresed because..."-there is no reason, which is frustrating-depression has physiological causes-chemicals in the brain get out of whack-it is more than being sad. if your "depression" gets in the way of leading a "normal" life (school, work, friends, family, diet, exercise, sleep, etc.) you should see a doctor. drugs and/or therapy are very effective, although getting the right combination and appropriate drug can take some time.

5. Alright, this is what I've told all my friends:

If you are depressed, and you know why you are depressed you do not have depression.
If you are depressed, and you can fix/make it so you are no longer depressed you do not have depression.

If you are depressed, and you can't control it; you have depression.
If you are depressed, just because you are depressed, you have depression.
If you are depressed, and nothing can make you happy, you have depression.

EXCEPTION:
(Ex: Maria has a best friend named Jessica, and Maria is invited to her birthday party. The really wants to go, cause she never gets to hang out with her friends and knows if she is not there, no one may come to her friend's party. The day of the party something happens, her father cannot find her so he is angry and does not let her go. Maria becomes VERY depressed.) In that example you can't control it, you are depressed, and nothing will make you happy. But do you see the exception?


Good luck, and cherish when you are happy! :)

6. I'm pretty sure being sad about something is from an outside variable, and actually being 'clinically cdepressed' is when you have a chemical imbalance in your brain (something with serotonin 'the happy chemical') that wont allow you to be fully happy.