There are different depression types. There are also other types which have unique symptoms, signs and treatment.

1. Major depressions, clinical and chronic depression, are the most common.
2. Atypical depression
3. Bipolar depression or manic depression
4. Seasonal depression
5. Psychotic depression
6. Postpartum depression

Major depressive disorder affects your ability to work, sleep, eat, and activites in your life that you would normally enjoy. Feeling sad, lonely, not wanted or needed. Major depression is disabling to your body causing you to not function as you normally would. It’s possiable that it may only occur once in a person’s lifetime, but it’s known to happen thoughtout. Symptoms that can be noticed are decrease in mood and loss of interest. You would feel that way daily, most of the day, all day, or even for weeks. Chronic depression is depression that is long-term, is when you have suffered being depressed for two years or more. This is known to be less severe than major depression.

Atypical depression is a “subtype of deprssion” and can be difficult to treat. It has specific symtoms which someone with clinical depression would have five or more of the following:

1. sadness
2. loss of energy
3. feelings of hopelessness or worthlessness
4. loss of enjoyment in things that were once pleasurable
5. difficulty concentrating
6. uncontrollable crying
7. difficulty making decisions
8. irritability
9. increased need for sleep
10. insomnia or excessive sleep
11. unexplained aches and pains
12. stomachache and digestive problems
13. decreased sex drive
14. sexual problems
15. headache
16. a change in appetite that causes weight loss or gain
17. thoughts of death or suicide
18. attempting suicide

People with atypical depression tend to have first experienced depression at an early age, during their teenage years. “Researchers are also investigating the idea that atypical depression may be a milder form of bipolar disorder called chronic depression. Key symptoms to look for in atypical is over eating, over sleeping, fatigue, extreme sensitivity to rejection and moods worsen or improve in direct response to events.

Bipolar depression or manic depressionis a complex mood disorder meaning having dramatic mood swings, mild to extreme and can happen within minutes or hours the casues is not known but has a genetic component that can run in families. Mood swings associated with it alternate from major, or clinical, depression to mania.

Seasonal depression also called seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is known as a depression that occurs at the same time of each year. It can start in the fall or winter and end in the spring or summer and just the opposite. People with (SAD) experince many of the same signs of depression like during winter like:

• decreased levels of energy
• difficulty concentrating
• fatigue
• increase in appetite
• increased desire to be alone
• increased need for sleep
• weight gain

These are the symptoms during summer:

• decreased appetite
• trouble sleeping
• weight loss

Psychotic depression is when the mind has delusional thoughts and hallucinations. The symptoms include:

•  Agitation
•  Anxiety
• Hypochondria
• Insomnia
• Intellectual impairment
• Physical immobility
• Psychosis

To stabilize the person's mood different medications are given including combinations of antidepressants
Postpartum depression is a form of major depression and a mixture of physical, emotional and behavioral changes that happen to women after giving birth. Symptoms of postpartum depression are similar to what happens normally following childbirth. and antipsychotic medications.

• Lack of sleep
• Appetite changes
• Excessive fatigue
• Decrease libido
• Frequent mood changes

These also are accompanied by major depression symptoms.
There are things that could increase the chance of getting postpartum depression like:

• a history of depression during pregnancy
• age at time of pregnancy -- the younger you are, the higher the risk
• ambivalence about the pregnancy
• children -- the more you have, the more likely you are to be depressed in a subsequent pregnancy
• having a history of depression or premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)
• limited social support
• living alone
• marital conflict

Not every woman will get it, but one out of ten will develop major or long lasting depression.

Depression is NO joke and can be harmful to yourself and if you have any of these symptoms it’s very important to talk to your doctor.