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One of the most difficult afflictions to acknowledge in oneself is a mental or psychological disorder such as clinical depression. The common Judeo-Christian perspective offers a philosophy of individual strength and the ability to overcome emotional difficulty without aid, a 'pull up your socks' attitude. For this reason, it can be very difficult for people who struggle with depression to come to grips with the fact that they cannot pull themselves out of the state by themselves, and that they need to seek out professional help for the problem. It can be even more difficult to accept the fact that sometimes medication is necessary to treat depression as many drugs have significant side-effects.

One of the reasons that depression is so hard to deal with is the fact that it runs parallel to emotions that are within the 'ordinary' range of human experience. It is true that everybody gets depressed at some point. Clinical depression, however, is an ongoing process that a person cannot seem to shake. Clinical depression is a long-lasting situation. A common rule of thumb is determining how long you have felt 'down' for. If a person has been feeling uncommonly irritable for no apparent reason, appear to have no energy, or have trouble concentrating for a period of more than two weeks, and these feelings begin to interfere with the daily life of the individual, odds are good that they are experiencing clinical depression.

Feelings of depression are caused by chemical imbalances, which affect the function of the brain. Simply, the chemicals that aid in the process of transmitting emotional response in the brain of the depressed individual begin to have a greater of lesser presence than would be considered normal.

The good news is that depression is always treatable. Medication and therapy are available to an individual experiencing depression. These treatments may have different reaction times within a given individual, but all treatments require time to be effective.

Clinical depression is not rare, nor should it be considered a sign of weakness or defect in any person. If you feel you might be exhibiting symptoms of clinical depression, do not hesitate to consult a qualified physician. Help is out there and is highly effective.