Depression is a disorder that involves feelings of sadness lasting for two weeks or longer, often accompanied by a loss of interest in life, hopelessness, and decreased energy. Such distressing feelings can affect one's ability to perform the usual tasks and activities of daily living. This is considered to be clinical depression. It is very different from a temporary case of "the blues " triggered by an unhappy event or stressful situation. Depression affects the mind, but this doesn't mean "it's all in your head." Depression is a medical illness linked to changes in the biochemistry of the brain.
Depression is not a weakness of character. Being depressed does not mean that a person is inadequate. It means the person has a medical illness that is just as real as diabetes or ulcers. Like other medical disorders, clinical depression should not be ignored or dismissed. A clinically depressed person cannot simply "snap out of it" any more than a person with an ulcer could simply will it away.
Some extra resources:
Facts About Depression in Children
Abuse and Neglect
Depression and Teen Suicide
Cutting
