I feel sad a lot, unmotivated, and I often can't stop crying for many hours. But I sleep and eat decently and I also can smile or laugh sometimes. Am I depressed or just sad?

I am sorry to hear you are feeling this way. Although I am glad to here that you are still eating and sleeping alright, and laughing and smiling, even if it is only a couple of times. I am not qualified to diagnose you however if you would like a diagnosis I can refer you to a 7 cups therapist. I understand that you are feeling down, what are some things you do to raise your spirits? ( examples: listening to music, writing in a journal, going on a run, breathing fresh air, painting, playing sports, exercising, drawing, meditating, etc.)

Depression can look different for different people. If you've experienced a lack of interest, no motivation, and crying for enough time that it's impacted your life and you've thought about if you're depressed, then you are probably depressed. Tracking your moods daily can help you find patterns in your depression and determine if there's a trigger, such as seasonal depression or past traumatic events. Because there could be many different causes of depression it's best to talk to a professional. The good thing about depression is it's fairly manageable through therapy, community support, medication or treatments. I wish you the best of luck and I hope your pain eases soon.

Thank you for reaching out. While we can't diagnose you, as depression is a mental illness and we have limited information, all I can say is that if it is affecting you negatively to the extent that it's daily and/or it is affecting your life/relationships/work/school - please don't be afraid to seek professional help from a doctor. They will better guide you with what you possibly have and hopefully help you get in touch with a therapist. If you want to, though, you can skip going to the doctor and go straight to a therapist. There are many resources out there that can help you connect with someone locally. When you do, please don't hesitate to mention what your concerns or what you think you have. I hope this helps.

You are feeling overpowered by your emotions and don't know where to turned and this is affecting your sleep greatly, and you are overcome with a depressed mood. Sort of lifeless and unfeeling in such a way that things seem unreasonable and you are unnearved and out of sorts and not sure where to turn and what to do and you are here looking for answers in any way that you can find them, sadness has taken control and won't let go of you no matter how long you are trying to pull that off. And you can't even put a smile on your face or eat well.

We as listeners are not qualified to give you any diagnoses, but I can tell you I think it seems like a good idea to seek professional help. Depression isn't being sad 24/7, sometimes you can be happy. Also, it's different for every person. If you are ready to take the step to try and find professional help they can possibly give you a diagnosis. Never worry about not fitting into a certain stereotype of something, everyone is unique and depression comes in different shapes or forms. I also want to wish you a lot of strength as well.

A difficult question. Everyone in their life, at some or another, experiences periods of sadness and depression. Ask yourself why you are feeling this way. If you recently had a death in the family, a break up, lost a job, or had another trauma occur, this could be why you are feeling this way. If you have been having feelings of depression for an extended period of time and can't seem to get motivated to the point where it is affecting how you are functioning in life, it could be depression. I personally experience Major Depression. IT is very different than just feeling sad. Depression affects every aspect of your life. If this is the case, you are probably depressed and should consult a therapist. Even if it isn't clinical depression, talking to someone can help you out of a rough time. Crying for many hours without a specific reason or recent event causing the crying spells, then I would say you should consider talking to a therapist as soon as possible. You could also talk to friends and family and see how you feel after talking about what you're going through. But YOU NEED to talk to someone otherwise, things will only get worse and if you have clinical depression, you will start showing more serious symptoms. Please talk to a professional if your feelings of saddness are affecting your everyday functioning, especially if has been going on for several weeks or months. Good luck and remember if you do have clinical depression or another mental health issue, it is not uncommon and you are not alone. Millions suffer from depression. The important thing is to get the help you need.

Depression can have many types and forms! Movies and stories may stereotypically depict depression as a dark cloud hanging above a person's head and rendering them unable to function completely. But this is just a form of depression. Often times a high-functioning form of depression can also exist, where in one may be gainfully employed, socialise normally, laugh or even be a class clown, but have moments of deep sadness and emptiness. if you feel that the sadness in your life is a constant presence and that it deviates from your normal sense of being, then certainly seek help for this.

First of all, there is a mantra for depression. You want to know how to get depressed? Sit and think about, 'What about me? What about me? What about me?' You will get depressed. When you come out of that, and see, What is it I can do, how I can contribute? You will have no time to sit and brood over yourself. do not spend your life regretting the past or worrying about the future. If you do, you will miss the only part of it that is yours, here now: THE PRESENT Look at how many problems you have had in the past -- how they all came and have gone. Know that even this will go, and you have the energy and power within you to overcome it. You will get confidence by understanding and looking at your own past.

The main issue here is how long. If this lingering, persistent sadness has remained for more than two weeks, then indeed we could be talking about a case of mild depression. By your use of the word "decently" I assume you haven't been eating and sleeping as well as you used to. The bottom line is: This very well could be case of mild depression (albeit I am not a diagnostician and can't tell for sure); fortunately, this is amenable to psychotherapy, and even self-help materials are worth considering at this stage. Ideally, you should see your family physician as soon as possible to determine the course of action. Best of luck.

So you're feeling unmotivated and often can't stop crying for no reason. But at the same time, you're experiencing feelings of happiness and you would like to know whether you're depressed or sad. Now, I can't give you a completely accurate answer, but here is what I think about your situation. Which, in my experiences, I have gone through the same thing. There are also many types of depression, but that doesn't necessarily mean you have it. You may just experience this feeling and it's overwhelming. But it is totally okay to go through this, and I just want to say that it is absolutely okay to be sad and depressed sometimes, as longs as you're trying your hardest to get better. Because that's what you're here for right?