Recognizing Depression: Signs, Symptoms & Early Detection

Many times we feel 'down in the dumps' but how do you know if it's more serious than just a bad day? While this can be moderately challenging as you are looking inside of yourself, it's important to do this when you've been feeling 'down in the dumps' for a long time. The sooner you detect depression, the sooner you can get help and live a healthier life.

Things You'll Need

• Pen or Pencil
• Paper
• Quiet Place

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Instructions

• 1

  Find a quiet place. You're about to do some soul-searching so make sure you have the time and quiet area that you'll need.

• 2

  Write down how you've been feeling lately. Try to write down how you felt the past 7 days. It may be hard to remember at first but try to write down as much as you can.

• 3

  Look over your list and ask yourself how long you've been feeling that way. If you've been feeling the same for the past 7 days, or longer, seek help. It could be a situational thing (i.e. you broke up with your boy/girlfriend) or it could be more serious. Either way it's best to get help as soon as you can.

• 4

  If none of this works for you, check out depression websites and see if any of the symptoms/emotions associated with depression relate to you (sometimes it's easier to go through a list and just answer 'yes' or 'no').