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Depression: Supporting Someone Who Is Depressed

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  • Don't ignore talk about suicide. Talk to a doctor, or call or emergency help if needed.

Depression is a disease. It's caused by changes in the chemicals in the brain. Depression isn't a character flaw, and it doesn't mean that the person is bad or weak. It doesn't mean that he or she is going crazy.

Depression causes a person to feel sad and hopeless much of the time. It's different from normal feelings of sadness, grief, or low energy. The person may lose interest in daily activities and may feel sad and grouchy for a long time.

Many people don't get help because they are embarrassed or think that they'll get over depression on their own. But most people need treatment to get better.

Treatment depends on how severe the depression is and includes medicine, counseling, self-care, or a combination of these. Sometimes a person has to try several types of treatment before finding one that works. Most people feel better in 1 to 3 weeks, but it can take as many as 6 to 8 weeks for treatment to work as well as it can.

Depression is common. Men and women of all ages, ethnic groups, and economic groups can have it. It often runs in families. But it also can happen to someone who doesn't have a family history of depression. A person can have depression one time or many times.

Test Your Knowledge

Depression is a disease, just like asthma is a disease.


If you've never been depressed, it's hard to understand just how hopeless and discouraged depression can make you feel. Depression can upset your life as much as other major illnesses, and it can make it hard to take care of family, work, and social duties.

Supporting someone who has depression is important because it can:

  • Help the person continue treatment. This is the best thing that can happen.
  • Boost the person's self-esteem and self-confidence. This helps the person deal better with family, work, school, and daily life.
  • Show the person that he or she has a friend. Friendship can show the person that he or she is not alone.

Test Your Knowledge

Helping someone with depression is important because:

It may help the person stay in treatment.
It makes you feel good about yourself.

Here are some things you can do to help:

Educate yourself


  • Call or emergency help if you think:

Help with professional treatment

If you have permission, you can:

  • Help the person manage medicines.

Home support



Take care of yourself



For more information, see the topic Caregiver Tips.

Test Your Knowledge

A way to help someone who has depression is:

Tell the person to face up to things and get back to normal.
Listen and give support, but also point out that not everything is bad.
Help out around the house. Someone who is depressed may not have energy, so running errands or doing some housework can help the person.

You need to do everything possible and put your life on hold to help a person with depression.


Now that you have read this information, you are better prepared to help someone who has depression.

Some medicines for depression have side effects that cause people to stop taking them.

Click here to view an Actionset.Depression: Dealing With Medicine Side Effects
Click here to view an Actionset.Depression: Taking Antidepressants Safely

If you would like more information on depression, the following resource is available:


National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)
3803 North Fairfax Drive
Suite 100
Arlington, VA 22203
(703) 524-7600
Fax: (703) 524-9094
Web Address:


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ByHealthwise Staff
Primary Medical ReviewerKathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine
Specialist Medical ReviewerLisa S. Weinstock, MD - Psychiatry
Last RevisedJanuary 11, 2013

eMedicineHealth Medical Reference from Healthwise


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