How to know if you are depressed: 4 short L-words

Depression is one of the most treatable mental
disorders, experts say.
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• Being unhappy about something or having a bad day is
  different from the long-term sadness and loss of interest in
  life that are associated with depression.
• A simple four-word checklist can help you decide if you
  or a loved one is at risk.
• It’s always best to get a professional opinion, but
  these words can help start a conversation.

Mental health experts are worried: Depression
is on the rise in the US, especially in teenagers. From
2005 to 2015, depression rates in kids between the ages of 12 to
17 spiked, and the suicide
rate for teenage girls is now the highest it’s been in four
decades. 

Experts aren’t sure what’s causing the disturbing trend, but
they’re concerned about the mental health of the country. 

In New York City, coaches are working to recruit and train a kind
of civilian mental-health army of 250,000 volunteers. The hope is
that people trained in “mental health first aid” will be
better able to start conversations, lend a helping hand, and
share compassion for friends, colleagues, neighbors, and other
fellow New Yorkers who are dealing with mental health
issues. 

New York residents who volunteer get a free, day-long training —
I recently participated in one. My fellow volunteers and I were
taught some simple ways to spot the difference between someone
experiencing a bad mood or a few bad days and a person with more
serious, long-term depression. 

The coaches suggested a four-word approach to checking in on
friends and loved ones.

If you’re worried that you or someone you care about may be
suffering from depression, but you’re not quite sure how serious
it is, ask yourself how the person is doing when it comes to four
key happiness measurements.

Is you/your loved one’s mental state having an impact on the
person’s ability to:

• Live
• Laugh
• Learn 
• and Love?

If these four pillars of life are feeling compromised by a
persistent cloud of sorrow or indifference, it may be a sign that
depression is at hand. 

It’s pretty likely that you know someone dealing with depression.

The World
Health Organization (WHO) estimates that around 5.9% of
the US population is dealing with a diagnosable depressive
disorder. That means more than 1 in every 20 Americans are
suffering from depression at any given time.

Depression is the single largest contributor to “non-fatal health
loss” worldwide, according to the WHO. It affects around 4.4% of
the globe, though those rates vary from place to place. Some of
the highest depression rates in the world are among women in
Africa, while some of the lowest are in men in the Western
Pacific islands, the WHO says.

When health care professionals in the US diagnose depression,
they use a manual called the DSM-5, or “Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.” It lists several common
signs of depression, and defines depression as a condition
that lasts for more than two weeks and impacts a person’s ability
to go about their life, enjoying the activities that typically
make them happy.

Depression might change how a person thinks and feels about
the world, and can uproot how they would otherwise go about an
average day. In some cases, it can make it impossible for a
person to get out of bed in the morning. And it can have an
impact on other daily routines, like how a person sleeps, eats,
and works.

Only a trained mental health professional can officially diagnose
depression, but when it comes to on-the-fly “first aid” for
depression, these tell-tale signs can be a first warning that it
might be good to ask for help or see a counselor.

If you’re worried about depression, here are some additional
resources:

In New York, you can contact health care
professionals at this link. They’re available by text
message or online chat there as well.

If you’re having suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide
Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

There are also new apps coming online that aim to provide some of
the benefits of therapy on the go.
These include Woebot, a texting-based system, but they’re
untested and by no means a substitute for a mental health
professional.

The National Institute of Mental Health also offers a full list
of resources for depression on its website.