Depression is a very dangerous disorder.

Depression is a serious health problem, which requires a very important attention since it can even lead to death.

Depression is more prevalent in women than in men and its consequences can have serious repercussions for women. The stigma attached to depression in men can lead to attempts to mask symptoms through high-risk behaviors. Women have higher suicide attempts, but in men attempts are more lethal. Rates of completed suicide in males are higher in most countries of the world.

Depression: is a mental disorder characterized mainly by low mood and feelings of sadness, associated with alterations in behavior, activity level and thinking.

It is then characterized by its impact on people's mood and affect, linked to changes or problems such as appetite, fatigue, sleep, cognitive difficulties, excessive guilt and suicidal ideation. Although scientific research offers new elements to better understand the etiology of depressive disorders, fundamental questions remain to be answered. For example, some studies identify individual factors, such as genetic load, psychic trauma and/or vascular accidents, while others underline the importance of psychosocial factors, such as life events and economic crises.

The symptoms of depression are pathological sadness, loss of interest and enjoyment and a decrease in vitality that limits the level of activity and produces an exaggerated tiredness, which appears even after small efforts.

Throughout the course of the disease other symptoms may appear, such as feelings of guilt, irritability, pessimism about the future, suicidal ideation, loss of confidence in oneself or in others, decreased concentration and memory, restlessness, sleep disorders and decreased appetite.

The most common symptoms are:

- Pathological sadness.

- Loss of interest.

- Decreased vitality.

- Exaggerated tiredness.

The types of depression can be classified in an easy way:

- Major depression: has a more biological or endogenous origin, with a greater genetic component and less influence of external factors. It can appear recurrently and, in some cases, it has a certain relationship with the season of the year.

- Reactive depression: caused by poor adaptation to stressful environmental circumstances.

- Dysthymia: formerly known as depressive neurosis, which is characterized by a depressive picture of lower intensity than the previous ones, of chronic evolution (more than two years), without asymptomatic periods and with feelings of incapacity and somatization.

- Masked depression: instead of manifesting itself with the aforementioned symptoms, it appears as organic discomfort -somatizations- or behavioral changes.

The ideal treatment of depression will depend on the specific characteristics of the type and will be, as always, personalized, so an adequate doctor-patient relationship is essential. Basically, treatment consists of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy.

Psychotherapy offers security, confidence, understanding and emotional support; attempts are made to correct distorted thoughts; the temporary nature of the situation is explained and the situation is de-dramatized; the patient's participation in the healing process is achieved and, finally, the patient is taught to foresee possible relapses. Antidepressants and anxiolytics are used as pharmacological treatment.

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