439: When Even the Strongest Feel Discouraged: Elijah and Depression

Mom called it the blues, and I could tell when they came.

Every feature in her face fell downward.

Corners of her mouth bent down.

Her eyes sagged.

Her forehead took on these deep furrows.

She seemed ever on the verge of tears, alternately irritable and weepy.

Dad cautioned my brother and me, leave her alone.

She'll get over it.

She always did, but boy, it seemed like it took a long time.

A college classmate called it the pits.

It came on her like an unexpected storm, complete with gray clouds and outbursts.

Typically perky and cheerful, she became quiet and melancholy.

She described the feeling like she used the word numbness and stoned.

She said that her heart felt like it had been lifted out of her chest.

I had the audacity once to tell her to just snap out of it, to think on the bright side, to count her blessings.

Gratefully, she

had a better equipped professional in her life.

He told her the name of her condition, depression.

According to the World Health Organization, depression results from a complex interaction of social, psychological, and biological factors.

Social, psychological, biological.

I'm not sure there's much left.

Setbacks can trigger it.

So can the loss of a loved one, the loss of a job, the loss of a savings account, physical changes like a pregnancy or a cardiac event can dampen the spirits of the most joyful person.

Societal issues, as the world seems increasingly out of control, can leave a person in the dumps.

My mom