People with depression can be very challenging to be around, even for the most loving and well-intentioned person. Since these disorders hijack people’s thinking patterns, their ongoing negativity and pessimism can be hard to deal with. Progress can also be very slow for someone with depression. Even with professional help, it may take weeks or months to show improvement, so great patience is required.

Take Care Of Yourself

<ul><li>Encourage them to seek professional help: Since depression makes people think things will never get better, they often don't bother to seek help.</li><li>Help them get moving: The most important thing in the treatment of depression is "behavioural activation," which basically means to get moving-both literally (as in exercising or just getting out of the house) and metaphorically (in moving toward something you value, like family, career, or spirituality).</li><li>Offer validation and encouragement: People with depression tend to think very negatively, so avoid the temptation to argue with them.</li></ul>

What You Can Do to Help

<a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4684-5122-1_13">Numerous</a> <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/buy/2016-37833-001">studies</a> have shown that social support helps prevent and moderate the effects of depression. Since a big problem with depression is getting lost in the negative thoughts in your own mind, being around other people helps to refocus the mind on more important things, and can remind the person that they are so much more than their depression.

Foster Social Support

If you’ve never experienced clinical depression, it is hard to understand what it is like. Well-intentioned people will say things like, “just think positive,” or “just snap out of it.” Though they may not say it out loud, some people think a person with depression is just being lazy, or just trying to get attention. However, major depressive disorder is a serious psychological condition.

Depression: Saying "Be Positive" Doesn't Help

<ul><li>Depression is the second most common mental health issue (behind anxiety) and affects almost all human beings on the planet.</li><li>Everyone has ups and downs, but clinical depression is debilitating, affecting the ability to do even the most simple daily tasks.</li><li>Serious depression literally changes your brain and how it perceives in three ways:</li><li>You develop a negative view of yourself (I am worthless)</li><li>A person with depression believes they are terrible people, they cannot do anything right, and they are inherently flawed. This is why suicide starts to become an attractive option.</li></ul>

Understanding Clinical Depression

Knowing how depression works can help you better support loved ones who are struggling.

What You Can Do to Help

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