To be considered as suffering from depression you have to be diagnosed by a doctor, as the whole point of depression is that it affects your day to day life in such a way that you need help.
I have depression. Apparently because of a chemical imbalance in my brain. Not for some trivial reason like 'my cat died'. Thats not depression. Thats called being upset.
edit:
I'll tell you a bit about it.
I have actually had symptoms of depression for several years but only went to see a doctor about it about a year ago, after having a particularly bad episode where i starting screaming and crying and yelling at my boyfriend, telling him to get out of my life, because for reason i was convinced that he didn't listen to me or care about me. Some of my other symptoms included weird sleep patterns. I would struggle to get to sleep at night despite being tired, yet when i did sleep i would sleep for far too long, and i would often feel the need to sleep in the middle of the day. There were also various incidents where i was supposed to go out and meet people or see friends, and i would just curl up in a ball and sleep instead. I always feel drained of energy, no motivation to do anything, which extends to eating. I wouldn't eat sometimes for days as a time partly to punish myself, partly to prove that no-one cared, partly because i just didn't feel like it. I always gets headaches and am notorious for complaining about various aches and pains throughout my body, usually backache, or rib ache. Sometimes i break down into tears, or convince myself that no-one cares about me, my most recent episode I took to sleeping on the couch. It was cold and uncomfortable and i did it because, well, i think because i believed my boyfriend didnt care for me, and that i was a horrible person or something and so i was kind of punishing myself. And i even kept telling myself that as my very upset boyfriend carried me to bed in the middle of the night after discovering me freezing cold in the living room.
I've had councelling, but thats just a patronising woman who makes you talk about stuff then says 'oh yes, that must have been very difficult for you'. And i'm on medication. But the medication they give it only in 2 week installments, and i hate the doctors, for some reason i'm convinced they think i'm a waste of time and space, so i don't like having to go to them. Which means sometimes, i run out of medication and don't get anymore till someone drags me back.
^
that is my experiences of depression.
You will notice that some of it makes no sense. Even I, the person who thinks these things, knows it makes no sense, but I still can't help it. Thats kind of the point.
I am posting this in the hope that the self-diagnosed idiots who will undoubtedly post about the time they were depressed for a few weeks because a loved one died or they lost their job, will think twice before down playing what is, to some, a serious health condition.
