Just as no two people are exactly alike--not even identical twins!--no two cases of depression are exactly the same. Some patients have clinical depression and nothing else, while others may have several mental and physical disorders to deal with, along with it. And the cause and effect that may have taken place among all of them, will not only differ from one person to another, but in some cases, it may never be determined.

There are no hard-and-fast rules. Cancer patients receiving chemotherapy are not all doomed to come down with depression (depression in cancer patients), nor is this true of arthritics taking NSAIDs on a daily basis. Nor, by the same token, do all depression patients harbor other disorders.

The only thing for certain is, that everyone who experiences depressive symptoms should get a medical and psychological check-up to know what else may be present.

next: If You Know Someone Who's Depressed