Depression – a treatable illness

I WISH I had my hand chopped off so that people would know I am suffering.” This was how a patient described his depression. He was suffering, but the suffering was not external; it was internal. People could not believe that he was ill. He dressed and walked like normal. They told him to pull himself out of it, to be more positive, or to do more exercise. They couldn’t understand that he was undergoing an illness. 

Depression is a common illness. It is more common than hypertension or diabetes.