Before Anything: You must know and accept that sadness does not equal depression; sadness is only a small part of depression. In fact, some people with depression do not feel sadness at all.
A person with depression may also experience many physical symptoms, such as aches or pains, headaches, cramps, or digestive problems.
Someone with depression may also have trouble with sleeping, waking up in the morning, and feeling tired.
Being sad is a normal reaction to difficult times in life. But usually, the sadness goes away with a little time. Depression is different—it is a medical condition that may cause severe symptoms that can affect how you feel, think, and handle daily activities like sleeping, eating, or working. Depression is more common among women than men, likely due to certain biological, hormonal, and social factors that are unique to women.
When depression-related deaths due to suicide and stroke are considered, depression has the third highest global burden of disease. Major depression is growing in overall disease around the world; it is predicted to be the leading cause of disease burden by 2030, and it is already the leading cause in women worldwide. read page 2 for the full article
