Is depression REALLY an illness?

Question

I am not sure, sometimes i think depression is just a little silly and i need to just toughen up and deal with life, other times i am convinced that i have it and that my thoughts and feelings are.. abonormal

is depression really an illness, or is something thats made up by the person that claims to have it?

does this make sense? i havent worded it very well, im tired.. i aplogize

Answer 1

I believe depression is an illness.. its a chronic disorder that affects millions of people in the United States. Its caused by abnormalities in the pituitary gland in the brain. It really cant be cured because it has no start, nobody knows how it began in the first place. But people do overcome it. They eventually find their own remedy for it, but they really cant escape depression.  

Answer 2

i think that is true!

Answer 3

Trust me, depression is an illness.  I have been "depressed" for three years, and I have pretty much no "reason".  Good family, good home, good friends, etc..., and yet I have been so terribly depressed at times that I have been quite suicidal.  At other times (this past year until April) I have been somewhere between schizophrenia (catatonic and paranoid, kind of) and complete depression (according to my psychiatrist), and it could not have been changed by anything.  I think some depressions need to run their course, and some will never burn out.  Of course, there are the more superficial depressions (emo kids and whatnot) that are nothing like what I am describing.

Answer 4

I used to think people just needed to suck it up.

Yes, Depression is a real illness, but not as many people know it. 'Being sad' isn't depression. Everyone is sad.

Depression usually comes from traumatic events. A person who becomes depressed usually goes into much deeper sadness for a much longer period after such events.

Leonore is completely wrong. Many people with depression have brains that aren't producing enough pleasure chemicals, and medication can help it but never really totally fix it.

Chances are someone threw around the word 'depression' around you a little too much. I doubt you are clinically depressed if you are having the idea you need to 'suck it up'.  

You are probably just an angsty teenager who thinks life is unfair.

Thoughts of suicide or self-harm aren't normal and if you have them talk to an adult.

Answer 5

Depression doesn't have to be a illness...but it's existent in our lives!  I have felt both or many different types of depressions, which sometimes it's drawn by life's difficulties, and other times it's just in you!  One day I would feel the best, and the next I would Crash!  I wouldn't make this up...In this life you really have to believe in everything, because your not actually sure about anything...Everything is POSSIBLE after all right?

Answer 6

yes, and a cureable illness. I have read articles at this site on depression:

www.depressionandanxietypain.com  there is nothing there to buy, just articles

Answer 7

absolutely yes. Don't drink PEPSI ...see...www.interpak.blogspot.com

Answer 8

"i met a fellow who doesnt "believe" in depression"

There are PLENTY of them around; they're also know as knuckle draggers.

Lotsa people are like you (and me ten plus years ago) - struggling with the question of whether depression is a physical condition/dis-ease or just a sign of weakness.

Lotsa people believe that people with mental disabilities choose to be that way OR committed some sorta sin in the womb.

Lotsa people believe all sortsa c**p.

Lotsa people believe in the existence of invisible sky critters, too.

Go see a doctor and or counselor and find out.

If you're in Australia ring Lifeline or go to ...

http://www.beyondblue.org.au/index.aspx?

Good luck.

~

Answer 9

Yes it is very much an illness and different people suffer with it at different degrees, some with mild and some with severe. It can literally keep some from doing even basic tasks. Some people have to take medication to keep them stable in life. If you've ever suffered mild to heavy depression you know that it is an illness because it can knock your life right off the track and if it continues it's hard to get back on track. And yes, it can feel like your thoughts and feelings are abnormal. It is a horrible place to be. It can literally be like h**l on earth at times.  Makes one feel like they want to jump out of their own body to escape the bad feelings. More people need to try and understand this disease and how it affects those who suffer with it. It is an overlooked disease in this county and those who have not suffered it tend to downplay it. If you know someone who is suffering from this disease please check in on them and make sure they are ok because suicide could be their next step.

Symphony - you obviously haven't gotten any education on the subject, it cannot be cured but only controled by medication. If it does go away on it's own it can come back at any time throughout a person's life.