Hi anon

Only a doctor can diagnose depression but you certainly have the signs of it. There are websites that can tell you more about depression and other illnesses starting with this website on the home page. Most articles will have a list of symptoms you can see if you fit in and some also have quizzes you can take. But none of them can really tell you if you have depression or not, only a doctor can do that.

You've said enough in your first post to indicate that you have enough symptoms to warrant an evaluation. You can find someone to help at a local mental health clinic, if you don't have one in the area you can go to a hospital and ask for the mental health department. If you have a family physician you can see if they can recommend someone for you, assuming your doc has an open mind about these things and doesn't just tell you it will pass (if he does then go somewhere else for help).

If you are diagnosed there is a lot of treatment available, most often it involves therapy and may include medications if they think the cause of your depression is a chemical imbalance. Even with meds therapy is usually needed, because the meds aren't to make you feel better, they are to enable you to feel better. They will enable you to get out of the pit that seems impossible to get out of, and therapy will give you the understanding and the tools you need to get better.

-- The world is what we make of it --
-- Dave
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