It’s human nature to be sad sometimes, just like it’s human nature to be happy.  Life happens.  Births can bring joyous occasions while a death of someone close to us can rock us to our knees.  When sadness becomes an overwhelming and long lasting emotion that changes how you live your life, it may be time to get some help. In this article, we’ll walk you through how to tell if you are suffering from depression.

Symptoms of Clinical Depression

An overwhelming, long lasting sad feeling along with physical symptoms can mean you are clinically depressed.  Do you have trouble concentrating? Is it hard to remember the simplest details?  Do you have feelings of guilt or low self-esteem?  Has it become hard to sleep at night?  You may even have full blown insomnia that can just add to your depression.  Do you have a loss of interest in activities that were once important to you?  Have you experienced a sudden weight loss or gain?  Both ends of this spectrum can point to depression. The old saying “It’s not what you are eating, but what’s eating you” does have some truth in it.  Have you been experiencing persistent aches and pains?  If you’ve said yes to more than one of these questions you may want to seek help. We’ll talk about that next.

How Can I Get Help?

If you think you may have clinical depression or just want to talk to someone about it, there are people just waiting for you to call them.  If you have a family doctor, start with them. They can either see you themselves,  or point you in the right direction for getting tested for depression. If you do not have a regular doctor, then call any family doctor in your area and tell them that you have been having feelings of depression. They will get you in contact with someone in your area that can help you. There are many professionals waiting for your call.

Do You Think About Hurting Yourself?

If you have ever had thoughts of suicide, don’t brush it off as normal.  Please seek help immediately. This is nothing to be ashamed of.  Often times chemical imbalances like a thyroid that’s not producing enough hormones can affect your mood.  If your family has a history of depression or suicide attempts then you are most likely at a greater risk.  Depression alone carries a high risk of suicide so this is nothing to play around with and ignore.  Here are some numbers to call if you are having thoughts of hurting yourself:  1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) or 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255) or for the hearing impaired or deaf hotline at 1-800-799-4TTY (1-800-799-4889).

You Are Not Alone

One thing to remember when you have feelings of depression is that you are not the only one who feels this way, you are not weird, and you are very special to those around you.  43.8 million American adults experience depression every year.  That is 1 in 5 adults.  Depression is an illness.  With any illness you can start to feel isolated, that is why this is all the more reason to reach out for help.

I hope that these tips can assist you as you start to seek help for how you are feeling. If you have any tips for coping with depression, don’t hesitate to share them with us below!