Feelings such as these are usually temporary and can often motivate us to make some positive changes in our life. Clinical depression is a recognized illness that can respond well to the support and treatment offered by qualified health care providers. Many people unnecessarily prolong the period of time that they are clinically depressed by avoiding appropriate support and treatment early on.
Depression is the most common serious psychiatric illness.
Some 10 to 15 percent of people suffer from it at some time in their lives, especially in the milder forms. There doesn't seem to be any one clear cause for clinical depression. Newer forms of antidepressant medications do work, however, by restoring the balance of neurotransmitters in the brain. In some cases, no contributing factor, or factors, appears obvious in the development of a bout of clinical depression. Antidepressant drugs are usually effective in more than two thirds of people with depression, provided that the drugs are taken in a sufficient dosage over a long enough period of time.