LAUSR

Depression is a common experience. We have all felt “depressed” about a friend's cold shoulder, misunderstandings in our marriage, tussles with teenage children, sometimes we feel “down” for no reason at all. However, depression can become an illness when: – the mood state is severe; – it lasts for 2 weeks or more and; – it interferes with our ability to function at home or at work. Signs of a depression includes: – lowered self-esteem (or self-worth); – change in sleep patterns, that is, insomnia or broken sleep; – changes in appetite or weight; – less ability to control emotions such as pessimism, anger, guilt, irritability and anxiety; – varying emotions throughout the day, for example, feeling worse in the morning and better as the day progresses; – reduces capacity to experience pleasure: you cannot enjoy what's happening now, nor look forward to anything with pleasure; – hobbies and interests drop off; – reduces pain tolerance: you are less able to tolerate aches and pains and may have a host of new ailments; – changes sex drive: absent or reduced; – poor concentration and memory: some people are so impaired that they think that they are becoming demented; – reduces motivation; it does not seem worth the effort to do anything, things seem meaningless; – lowers energy levels. At the Institute, we believe that personality and temperament contribute to depression, particularly non-melancholic depression. Certain personality types are more at risk of developing depression than others. Generally speaking, someone who is depressed would: have a low mood, be pessimistic, have lowered self-esteem and feel hopeless and helpless. Disclosure of interest The author has not supplied his/her declaration of competing interest.