How do I know if I actually have depression?

@Devonlaughs4242

You might be taking it too seriously. Depression, Anxiety, Bipolar, etc. all these things are labels that someone applies to something. The label is not who you are. If you are sad most of the time, lost interest in doing things and people, have trouble eating or sleeping and see life as perpetually getting worse with no let up or any hope of help from these feeling of having your soul pressed down all the time, then you'll probably be considered as depressed.

Now, if you are seeking medication or special services, then you will need someone who has gone to school to study psychology and approved by the government to provide you with a label and then a drug or other therapy.

It is a complicated question.

Depression does not show up in brain scans, blood tests, or anything of that sort. It is a mental state, not an abnormality in the brain.

To add to the confusion, people use the same word, "depression", to mean an ordinary everyday feeling that everyone experiences, and also to mean a serious medical condition.

So I would say if you are feeling sad, unhappy or unmotivated you can say you have depression in the ordinary everyday sense. If there is no apparent reason for feeling that way, and if the feeling lasts a long time (weeks or more), then it might be a medical condition. A doctor can determine that. There are very effective treatments available for the medical condition, including medications and talking therapies.

@Devonlaughs4242