True depression is hard to diagnose. Its symptoms can be caused by numerous diseases, circumstances and biological events. It can easily be over-diagnosed in people just feeling down in the dumps for a moment and under-diagnosed in those with serious mental illness. Explore this section to hear what the experts–family doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist–have to say, take a look at the official diagnostic criteria for depression and online self-diagnosis tools and learn about the role of advertising in diagnosing and treating depression.
What do the experts say?
Listen to a health psychologist, a clinical psychologist, a psychiatrist and a family physician talk about diagnosing Major Depressive Disorder and whether they think it is over-diagnosed or over-medicated. <<Watch the video>>
The “official” depression diagnosis
What exactly constitutes depression? View the official diagnostic criteria for depression from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. <<Read more>>
Have the Internet? Self-diagnose.
Though a true diagnosis of depression can be complex and serious, many institutions promote free self-screening tools to determine whether a person is–or may be–depressed and should seek professional evaluation and treatment. <<Read more>>
The role of advertising
Listen to the experts discuss how direct-to-consumer advertising plays a role in the diagnosis and treatment of depression. <<Watch the video>>
