What Causes Depression?

As with many conditions, there is no single cause for depression. However, it generally arises because, for some reason, we no longer feel that we are loved, cared about or respected. Depression may be inherited (or, at least, it is possible for someone to be genetically predisposed to suffer from anxiety and depression); or it may be the result of life events such as bereavement, the loss of a significant relationship, or redundancy. One factor that is likely to be important is the way we deal with stress. If we are able to recognise stressful situations in advance and back away from them, we can often avoid their consequences; if on the other hand, stress is unavoidable, or our stress threshold is low, then our mood is likely to be affected. An important factor here is our ability to cope: if we perceive ourselves to be unable to cope with a difficult situation, levels of certain chemicals in the brain that control our mood are likely to be reduced, resulting in anxiety and depression.