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Depression is a psychiatric disorder that is characterized by extreme feelings
of sadness, anehedonia (or loss of pleasure), guilt, helplessness or hopelessness,
an inability to concentrate, an increase or decrease of appetite, and thoughts
of death. Depressive illness often interferes with an individual's normal
functioning and often goes without being diagnosed for long periods of time
causing a lot of problems for the both the individual with the illness and
those around them.
Depression involves the body, mood and thoughts. It affects the way a person
eats and sleeps, the way one feels about themselves and the way one approaches
life in general.
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In any given 1-year
period, 9.5 percent of the population, or about 18.8 million
American adults, suffer from a depressive illness. |
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Most people with
a depressive illness do not seek treatment, although the great
majority-even those whose depression is extremely severe-can
be helped. |
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Thanks to years
of research, there are now medications and psychosocial therapies
such as cognitive/behavioral therapy that can help ease the
pain of depression. |
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Without treatment,
symptoms can last for weeks, months, or years. Appropriate treatment,
however, can help most people who suffer from depression. |
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There are different
forms or variations of depression and the said disorder can
accompany other disorders as well. |
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The three most
common types of depression: major depression, dysthmia, and
bipolar disorder are described here. |
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