Recognizing Warning Signs of Depression Depression is quite different from sadness, sorrow, or even grief. The latter are normal reactions to disappointments and losses, including traumatic events in one s life. With time, the support and understanding of others, and sometimes with psychological counseling, you will recover from periods of deep sadness. In fact, transitory feelings of sadness or discouragement are perfectly normal, especially during particularly difficult times.
Depression is one of the most common and treatable of all mental illnesses.
In any six-month period, 9.4 million Americans suffer from this disease. One in four women and one in 10 men can expect to develop it during their lifetime. Eighty to 90 percent of those who suffer from depression can be effectively treated, and nearly all people who receive treatment derive some benefit. Many doctors think depression is the illness that underlies the majority of suicides in our country. Every day 15 people aged 15 to 24 kill themselves.