Bipolar disorder is also known as manic depression. It sufferers have periods of the deepest severe depression alternating with quite the opposite overwhelming symptoms of feelings of all powerfulness, tirelessness and invincibility. It needs very prompt medical treatment in its severe phases

Postpartum Depression (postnatal depression) affects women who have just given birth and is due to the rapidly changing hormonal levels. It too needs prompt medical intervention as it can be severe, life threatening and of very rapid onset.

Seasonal Affective Disorder is also known by its appropriate acronym SAD. This is thought to be due to lack of sunlight in people who live in areas with low winter sunshine. Sunlamps used for a couple of hours a day throughout the winter are often helpful (works with me!. ed)

All these types of Depression have many symptoms that fall under four headings. Those to do with mood; those to do with thought or those to do with motivation and physical symptoms.

Those to do with mood include:-

• sadness deepening to gloom, the loss of ability to enjoy normal activities leading to withdrawal from emotional involvement with others and an increased tendency to cry.

Those to do with thought include:-

• feelings of inadequacy, devaluing of their efforts, difficulty in making decisions and feeling that they are always wrong.

Those to do with motivation include:-

• apathy and withdrawal from activity.

Finally at a physical level, depressed people:-

• feel run down, are almost always tired and suffer from almost any physical symptom

Also helpful may be our pages about anxiety, insomnia and stress.