Professor Peter McGuffin on depression
'There's overwhelming evidence that depression can be inherited. In fact, children with a depressive parent are three times more likely to suffer "the blues" themselves. This could be worth considering if you're debating whether to see a doctor about the way you are feeling. There are a number of effective treatments around, so it's always best to get checked out.'
Professor Peter McGuffin, director of the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College, London
More help and advice
- Read all the facts on depression
- Read one woman's experience of depression
- Get all the facts about SAD
- Tips on coping with post-natal depression
Where to next?
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8 tips to improve your mental health
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Ask Dr Chris: Radiotherapy and Bipolar Disorder
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Emergency helplines - part 2
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Health commandments: Enjoy the sunshine
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How fish can help depression
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How lack of sleep affects your body: Part 3
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How to beat SAD
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Improve your mental health: Part 2
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Improve your mental health: Part 3
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Sun helps SAD
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The health benefits of laughter: Part 2
Please leave a comment, tip or story in the box below
maxine, about 1 year
i am sufferin fro depression and have done on n off for the past 15yrs i am on antidepressants and have had some talkin therapies but the people who suffer most are my family they never know how i am going to react . and i have to rely on them to simple tasks for me on bad days my 14yr old daughter probably gets the worst as she often has to look after her two younger sisters and do the housework instead of going out with her friends. it does get very scarey especially some of the negative thoughts i have about myself and others. you feel like your going mad, and that everyone is just out to get you.some peolpe think that because they cannot see what is wrong with you you are making it up. i wish i just want to be normal again.
Report this commentmoustafa, about 1 year
iam really sufering fro depression and i dont know what to do, i went to my GP but for sorry he didnt help me at all.i really dont know what to do, i really need help, this depression will make me mad, and i really dont feel good and my body so so weak. i really need help..... thank u moustafa
Report this commentsandra dale, about 1 year
i do believe it is inherited, iam 46years of age, and as a child i grew up with my mum who had very bad depresson. i to then grew up feeling depressed, i have stuggled all through my life feeling like this. i have a daughter who is 24 and she to is depressed, we have had long conversations about how we feel.i denied it as depression for years, but now realise if i dont face it when it comes on me . it then just gets worse. depresson can be very scarey. at one point i thought i was going mad.
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Yovania, about 1 year
Being a single mom of Four children 19, 16, 11, & 8 yrs old for teh past 3 yrs have taken an emotional toll on me big time I fight i guess this what u calll "depression", i get stressed out easily, i feel anxiety ,worried and fear sometimes it occurs for weeks goes away i get some type of relief then it crawls back into my life i have been fighting it on and on again i am exhausted! i want to cry all the time this overwhelming feeling of dispair, its dark and it is horrible. I have not been 2 a dr. yet i have no insurance. i need help b/c at ime si feel liek i am going mad and i fightto keep myself composed on the outside when smiling when i feel like i am dying inside, yet hiding it from my children,friends and the world b/c i have been known to be the happy go lucky cheery one that has it all under control all my life.
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