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00:00Hey, I heard you were feeling down.
00:11Well, look what I brought.
00:13Bubble wrap!
00:16Huh.
00:18You really are down.
00:20Dear Tim and Moby,
00:22What does it mean to be depressed?
00:25Isn't that just another way of saying you're sad?
00:29Signed, William.
00:31Well, we all know what it's like to be sad.
00:34It's a normal reaction to things that hurt you,
00:36like losing a prized possession,
00:38or getting teased,
00:40or more serious losses,
00:42like the death of a loved one.
00:46You may even feel down for no particular reason,
00:48and that's okay.
00:50With time and support,
00:52sadness goes away, and you're able to move on.
00:54But sometimes,
00:56a person can't just bounce back from it
00:58for weeks, or even longer.
01:00And it gets in the way of their routine,
01:02schoolwork,
01:04hanging with friends, everything.
01:06In that case,
01:08they might have a type of mood disorder
01:10called depression.
01:12Depression changes how the brain works,
01:14making it hard for a person to feel better again.
01:18Depression can be hard to understand
01:20if you've never experienced it.
01:22It's been compared to a crushing weight,
01:24or seeing the whole world
01:26in black and white.
01:28I picture it like living with a bad,
01:30uninvited guest.
01:32Depression can take things you normally love
01:34and suck the joy out of them.
01:36It might sap your energy,
01:38making it hard to move or even think.
01:40It can make you eat or sleep
01:42way too much, or way too little,
01:44or interfere with your ability
01:46to focus at school.
01:48Depression is sneaky,
01:50since it doesn't just make you feel bad
01:52about stuff that happens.
01:54It makes you feel bad about yourself,
01:56like it's all your fault,
01:58and this is how it'll be forever.
02:00That makes it hard to recognize
02:02that you're suffering from a disorder.
02:04It can be even tougher to spot in children.
02:06For kids,
02:08the symptoms or signs of the disorder
02:10might not even include sadness.
02:12A kid with depression
02:14might get a lot of headaches,
02:16or stomachaches,
02:18or they might return to school
02:20or they might return to behaviors
02:22they gave up a while ago.
02:24They could have mood swings,
02:26or feel angry all the time.
02:28Symptoms like those
02:30can feed into harmful stereotypes.
02:34Unfortunately, there's a lot of false information
02:36out there, like that depression
02:38makes a person weird or even dangerous.
02:40These ideas can isolate
02:42depressed people from their peers,
02:44and add loneliness
02:46to all the other stuff they're dealing with.
02:48It can make them feel ashamed,
02:50like depression is a weakness
02:52they need to hide.
02:54Instead of seeking help,
02:56they might think they should be able to
02:58snap out of it, like a bad mood.
03:00But the truth is,
03:02depression is a health condition,
03:04like diabetes or asthma.
03:06In many cases, it's the result
03:08of physical problems in the brain.
03:10You wouldn't tell someone with asthma
03:12to just get over it.
03:14It's the same with depression.
03:16Depression has to be treated.
03:18Only a doctor can look at someone's symptoms
03:20and diagnose depression.
03:22Once it's diagnosed, depression
03:24is very treatable.
03:26Actually, depression
03:28is super common.
03:30About one in six people will experience it
03:32at some point in their life.
03:34It can affect anyone, including famous people
03:36you might look up to,
03:38like J.K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter books.
03:40Before she sold her first book,
03:42she was an unemployed, single mom
03:44struggling to pay the rent.
03:46She was also suffering from severe depression.
03:48Her experience with it
03:50inspired the Dementor characters
03:52in Harry Potter.
03:54Dementors are ghostly creatures
03:56who suck the joy out of a person,
03:58leaving them empty and hopeless.
04:00Pretty much how Rowling felt
04:02back in those days.
04:04Until she got treatment,
04:06and went on to write the top-selling book series
04:08of all time.
04:10Well, scientists are still
04:12piecing together why depression happens.
04:14We know that some factors
04:16up your chances of getting it,
04:18like if it runs in your family,
04:20or if you have certain medical conditions,
04:22or a stressful home life.
04:24But, obviously, there's still a lot to be learned
04:26about the causes of depression.
04:28One thing doctors have figured out
04:30is some effective ways to treat it.
04:32Many people find relief
04:34from talking to a mental health professional,
04:36like a school counselor.
04:38In some cases, they may prescribe medication.
04:40They'll probably also recommend
04:42healthy habits, like getting plenty of sleep
04:44and exercise.
04:46Right.
04:48Maybe you recognize some of the symptoms
04:50I mentioned, and you're wondering if you
04:52might be depressed.
04:54If you are concerned, talk to a
04:56trusted adult.
04:58Sometimes, depression can make a person feel
05:00so helpless, they might think about
05:02hurting themselves, or even suicide.
05:04If you ever
05:06feel this way, it's important to tell
05:08a trusted adult.
05:10Same thing if someone tells you that
05:12they feel this way.
05:14You might be afraid you're betraying their trust,
05:16but remember,
05:18depression distorts people's thoughts,
05:20making it hard for them to ask
05:22for the help they need.
05:24With help and treatment, these feelings
05:26can fade.
05:28Yeah, parents
05:30can get depressed too, just like anyone else.
05:32And that can be really tough on us
05:34kids.
05:36It's not your fault.
05:38And if you need someone to talk to,
05:40your school counselor is always a good option.
05:42Right.
05:44Friends are great support too.
05:46For people who have depression,
05:48the good news is, there's a lot of hope.
05:50With the right treatment,
05:52they can and will
05:54experience relief.
05:56Now, what do you say?
05:58Bubble wrap?
06:00Come on, just try it.
06:02You can do better than that.
06:06There you go.
06:10That's the spirit.
06:18Um...
06:24Oh, okay, okay.
06:26That's enough of that.
06:28Sorry.
06:32That's okay.
06:34That's okay.
06:36That's okay.
06:38That's okay.
06:40That's okay.
06:42That's okay.
06:44That's okay.
06:46That's okay.
06:48That's okay.
06:50That's okay.
06:52That's okay.
06:54That's okay.
06:56That's okay.
06:58That's okay.