When do people get depressed

Those symptoms become amplified in moderate depression and can lead to a decline in confidence and self-esteem. More days than not, you feel mildly or moderately depressed, although you may have brief periods of normal mood. Major depression otherwise known as major depressive disorder is much less common than mild or moderate and is characterized by severe, relentless symptoms.

Atypical depression is a common subtype of major depressive disorder with a specific symptom pattern. It responds better to some therapies and medications than others, so identifying it can be helpful. For some people, the reduced daylight hours of winter lead to a form of depression known as seasonal affective disorder SAD.

SAD can make you feel like a completely different person to who you are in the summer: hopeless, sad, tense, or stressed, with no interest in friends or activities you normally love. SAD usually begins in fall or winter when the days become shorter and remains until the brighter days of spring. While some illnesses have a specific medical cause, making treatment straightforward, depression is far more complicated. Certain medications, such as barbiturates, corticosteroids, benzodiazepines, opioid painkillers, and specific blood pressure medicine can trigger symptoms in some people—as can hypothyroidism an underactive thyroid gland.

But most commonly, depression is caused by a combination of biological, psychological, and social factors that can vary wildly from one person to another. Despite what you may have seen in TV ads, read in newspaper articles, or maybe even heard from a doctor, depression is not just the result of a chemical imbalance in the brain, having too much or too little of any brain chemical that can be simply cured with medication.

Biological factors can certainly play a role in depression, including inflammation, hormonal changes, immune system suppression, abnormal activity in certain parts of the brain, nutritional deficiencies, and shrinking brain cells.

But psychological and social factors—such as past trauma, substance abuse, loneliness, low self-esteem, and lifestyle choices—can also play an enormous part. Depression most often results from a combination of factors, rather than one single cause.

For example, if you went through a divorce, were diagnosed with a serious medical condition, or lost your job, the stress could prompt you to start drinking more, which in turn could cause you to withdraw from family and friends.

Those factors combined could then trigger depression. Loneliness and isolation. Not only can lack of social support heighten your risk, but having depression can cause you to withdraw from others, exacerbating feelings of isolation. Having close friends or family to talk to can help you maintain perspective on your issues and avoid having to deal with problems alone.

Marital or relationship problems. While a network of strong and supportive relationships can be crucial to good mental health, troubled, unhappy, or abusive relationships can have the opposite effect and increase your risk for depression. Recent stressful life experiences.

Major life changes, such as a bereavement, divorce, unemployment , or financial problems can often bring overwhelming levels of stress and increase your risk of developing depression.

Chronic illness or pain. Unmanaged pain or being diagnosed with a serious illness , such as cancer, heart disease, or diabetes, can trigger feelings of hopelessness and helplessness. Family history of depression. Your lifestyle choices, relationships, and coping skills matter just as much as genetics. Whether your personality traits are inherited from your parents or the result of life experiences, they can impact your risk of depression.

For example, you may be at a greater risk if you tend to worry excessively , have a negative outlook on life, are highly self-critical, or suffer from low self-esteem. Early childhood trauma or abuse. Early life stresses such as childhood trauma, abuse, or bullying can make you more susceptible to a number of future health conditions, including depression. Alcohol or drug abuse. Substance abuse can often co-occur with depression.

Many people use alcohol or drugs as a means of self-medicating their moods or cope with stress or difficult emotions. Actually, there are more than 50 different symptoms of major depression, ranging from the well-known—crying and sadness—to those you might never associate with depression, such as anger, workaholism and back pain.

The World Health Organization predicts that by , depression will be the second-leading cause of disability in the world, just behind cardiovascular disease.

People who are depressed are far more likely to have other chronic medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease, back problems, arthritis, diabetes, and high blood pressure, and to have worse outcomes.

Untreated depression can even affect your immune response to some vaccines. Depression is not just debilitating; it can be deadly. An estimated one out of five people with depression will attempt suicide at some point. Depression is not a mood you can just get over.

It is a disease in which the brain ceases to register pleasurable activities, says Angelino. Indeed, MRI studies with depressed people have found changes in the parts of the brain that play a significant role in depression.

Women are about twice as likely as men to be diagnosed with depression. Other risks for depression include factors such as these:. Get started now Find a health professional. Read more stories. Stay in touch with us Sign up below for regular emails filled with information, advice and support for you or your loved ones.

Sign me up. Your session is about to expire. You have 2 minutes left before being logged out. Please select 'ok' to extend your session and prevent losing any content you are working on from being lost. This imbalance is what creates the conditions for depression in some people — a condition known as seasonal affective disorder SAD. Exposure to light can help improve mood for people affected by SAD. The death of a family member, friend, or pet sometimes goes beyond normal grief and leads to depression.

Other difficult life events — such as when parents divorce, separate, or remarry — can trigger depression. Whether or not difficult life situations lead to depression can depend a lot on how well a person is able to cope, stay positive, and receive support. For some people, a negative, stressful, or unhappy family atmosphere can lead to depression.

Other high-stress living situations — such as poverty, homelessness, or violence — can contribute, too. Dealing with bullying , harassment, or peer pressure leaves some people feeling isolated, victimized, or insecure. Situations like these don't necessarily lead to depression, but facing them without relief or support can make it easier to become depressed. Life is full of ups and downs. Stress, hassles, and setbacks happen but hopefully not too often. How we react to life's struggles matters a lot.

A person's outlook can contribute to depression — or it can help guard against it. Research shows that a positive outlook acts as a protection against depression, even for people who have the genes, brain chemistry, or life situations that put them at risk for developing it. The opposite is also true: People who tend to think more negatively may be more at risk for developing depression.

We can't control our genes, brain chemistry, or some of the other things that contribute to depression.