Depression is a disturbance in a mood characterized by varying degrees of sadness, disappointment, loneliness, hopelessness, self-doubt and guilt. Most people tend to feel depressed at one time or another, but some people may experience these feelings more frequently or with deeper, more lasting, effects. In some cases, depression can last for months or even years. These feelings are usually brief in duration and have minimal or slight effects on normal, everyday activities. Depression at the next level is more severe.
Symptoms are more intense and last over a longer duration of time.
Day to day activities become more difficult but the individual is still able to deal with them. It is at this level, however, that feelings of hopelessness can become so overwhelming that suicide may seem the only solution. Shortages or chemical imbalances in the brain created by illness, infections, certain medications or drugs, improper diet or nutrition may play a significant role in some cases of depression. When the source of the depression is obvious and the person knows where it is coming from, the individual can expect the depression to level off and eventually fade away after a reasonable amount of time. The problem is when the depressed person is unaware of the source of such feelings.