The cost in human suffering cannot be estimated. Depressive illnesses often interfere with normal functioning and cause pain and suffering not only to those who have a disorder, but also to those who care about them.
Serious depression can destroy family life as well as the life of the ill person.
Read this flyer to see if you are one of the many undiagnosed depressed people in this country or if you know someone who is. The information briefly presented here may help you take the steps that may save your own or someone else's life. A depressive disorder is a total experience, involving your body, mood, feelings, and thoughts. It affects the way you eat and sleep, the way you feel about yourself, and the way you think about things. It is not the same as feeling blue.