You feel sad or cry a lot. *You feel guilty for no real reason. *You feel as if you' re no good and you've lost your confidence. *Life seems meaningless or as if nothing good is ever going to happen again. *You have a negative attitude. *You don't feel like doing a lot of the things you used to like - for e.g. music, sport, being with friends, going out and you want to be left alone most of the time. *You forget lots of things and it's hard to concentrate. *You get irritated often and little things make you lose temper. *Your sleep pattern changes. *You start sleeping a lot more or you have trouble falling asleep at night or wake up really early most mornings and can't get back to sleep. *Your eating habits change. You've lost your appetite or you eat a lot more. *You think about death or feel as if you're dying or have thoughts about committing suicide. Other symptoms may include:- Ø Digestive Problems Ø Sexual Problem Ø Headaches/Unexplained body aches & pains Ø Palpitations/Ghabrahat/Anxiety

Depression is caused by a combination of factors, such as the person's genes, biochemical imbalance in the brain, persona l stressful experiences and psychological factors. Low levels or imbalance of certain neurotransmitters cause depression. There are several different kinds that are involved such as serotonin, noradrenaline, dopamine. Stressful life events such as a serious loss, difficult relationship, financial problem can also trigger a depressive episode by overwhelming a person's ability to cope. Some depression runs in families and it is possible to inherit a tendency to depression. Depression can also be the result of various diseases. People suffering from an under active thyroid, anemia, heart attack, stroke, cancer or diabetes may be a higher risk for depression. This can be caused from the stress of the illness or the illness itself. Some prescription medicines can increase the risk of getting depressed. Eating habits, sleep patterns and lack of exercise may contribute to depression tendencies as well

Yes, depression is treatable. Treatment involves medicines and counseling/psychothera py. Whereas medicines treat the chemical imbalance in your brain, Counseling helps in resolving the conflicts in your mind & helps in correcting the way you think, thereby helping to cope up with stress.

Yes, depression like any other illness is completely curable if treated properly with appropriate medicines and for adequate duration.

Medicines for treating depression are called antidepressants. They correct the chemical imbalance in the brain that causes depression. Modern antidepressants are safe & very effective in alleviating depression.

When someone begins taking an antidepressant, improvement generally will not begin to show immediately. With most of these medications, it will take from 1 to 3 weeks before changes begin to occur. Some symptoms diminish early in treatment, others later. For instance, a person's energy level or his sleeping or eating patterns may improve before his depressed mood lifts. If there is little or no change in symptoms after 5 to 6 weeks, a different medication may be tried. Some people will respond better to one than to another

Yes. Recurrences are common. Even though the initial episode of depression may resolve, a long lasting change in the biology of the brain puts a patient at greater risk for subsequent episodes. The incidence of relapse is lower in patients who continue medicine for adequate period & who have had only one or two episode of depression.

Yes, Depression is one of the illnesses in which full cure is possible and one gets back to normal life gradually.