Are sadness and negativity symptoms of depression?

If your loved one is suffering from symptoms of major depression, "you may hear a sense of constant sadness that's unusual," says Murali Rao, MD, professor and chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Loyola University Medical Center in Chicago. "Your loved one might be focusing on negative aspects of life, be easily tearful when watching a sad show, become more sensitive to criticism than usual. She or he may express pessimism and hopelessness." Even if they don't say they feel sad, depressed, lonely, or hopeless, they are likely to look and act down and dejected.

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