Depression is a term that is often loosely used by people to describe a bad day or a week or while they are going through a rough patch in life. However, it is a disorder that is way more complicated than we understand. Therefore, it is important to know its symptoms and watch out for early warning signs of depression. These include:

1. Changes in body weight and eating habits
In some cases, overeating or eating too less can be one of the hidden and early warning signs of depression. Some people fighting depression find comfort in food. While in other cases, there is a loss of appetite because they feel low. These changes in eating habits can make a person lose or gain weight. Any drastic changes in body weight can also aggravate depression since it can have an impact on the self-esteem of a person.

2. Changes in sleep schedule
Any changes in the sleep schedule are one of the early warning signs of depression in people. Depression can make people experience problems falling asleep. People dealing with depression can also find themselves up in the early morning hours. In some cases, people might not find any problem in falling asleep, but depression can interfere with their sleep, and they might find themselves waking up multiple times in the night and not well-rested in the morning. It is not just a lack of sleep that can be a sign of depression. Some people tend to sleep in excess. They might crawl into their beds right after arriving home from work, spending their week offs in bed, and even not eating meals to sleep.

3. Lack of motivation
Not enjoying things that once brought you joy is another sign of depression you should not ignore. If you have been finding yourself unmotivated towards doing things that you once enjoyed, it can be an important sign you must watch out for. It can be anything, such as not feeling like reading, which was once your hobby, or not stepping out with friends, which you used to look forward to earlier. It is an alarming sign if doing any of those things does not excite you anymore. Instead, it makes you feel tired, and thus, you end up avoiding those things.

4. Dealing with small inconveniences is difficult
For anyone not having depression, dealing with small conveniences will not be difficult. These can be anything from not finding your keys or having a bad day at work. These will cause temporary discomfort, but it will not last long if you are not suffering from depression. However, if you are suffering from depression, dealing with these inconveniences can cause despair. These inconveniences can make you feel like nothing is falling in place, and it will stay the way it is. Depression can prevent you from looking beyond the downs in life. It also stops you from looking at the ups in life and will make you lose your ability to believe that things will be fine again.