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What’s the difference between depression and just being sad?

There's a very important distinction.

depression, mental health, what is depression, Ted-Ed

via Ted-Ed/YouTube

What is Depression?

This article originally appeared on 08.17.19

In the United States, close to 10% of the population has depression, but sometimes it can take a long time for someone to even understand that they have it.

One difficulty in diagnosis is trying to distinguish between feeling down and experiencing clinical depression. This TED-Ed video from December 2015 can help make the distinction. With simple animation, the video explains how clinical depression lasts longer than two weeks with a range of symptoms that can include changes in appetite, poor concentration, restlessness, sleep disorders (either too much or too little), and suicidal ideation. The video briefly discusses the neuroscience behind the illness, outlines treatments, and offers advice on how you can help a friend or loved one who may have depression.

Unlike the many pharmaceutical ads out there with their cute mascots and vague symptoms, the video uses animation to provide clarity about the mental disorder. It's similar in its poignant simplicity to the HBO short documentary "My Depression," based on Liz Swados' book of the same name.

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Dramatic video shows Florida sheriff's deputy delivering a baby on the side of the road

Maybe the deputy missed his calling!

Florida deputy delivers baby on the side of the road

No mom dreams of delivering their baby on the side of the road. Visions of comfy birthing centers or a hospital room with the OBGYN that you've grown fond of are usually the images that come to mind. But not everyone has a delivery in their place of choice, and women that have birthed more than one child typically have faster labors.

People who have a lot of children often know their bodies and sense how quickly their babies might come, so they try to make it to the hospital before things get interesting. A couple in Florida who were expecting their sixth child attempted to head to the hospital before the baby arrived, but the baby had other plans.

Knowing he had to get his wife to the hospital quickly, Luis Lopez pulled over when he saw deputies on the side of the road and flagged them down for a police escort.

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florida deputy birth

Michelle Obama shares how parents can keep their identities and be more than just 'mom' or 'dad'

It's so easy to lose yourself while raising kids.

via The Obama White House/Medium

Michelle Obama speaking during the Canadian State Visit to the White House.

When people become parents, the whole world suddenly revolves around a little bundle of joy that takes up all their time and energy. This makes it too easy for parents to let their personal aspirations, hobbies, and social lives slip away. Most of the time, it’s not a conscious choice but something that happens in the background while you’re busy caring for a child.

Then one day, you look up and wonder, where did my life go?

The big problem is that people can become so wrapped up in their identities as parents that when their children grow older and leave the house, they have no sense of self. Amy Morin, LCSW, says that this can lead to feelings of loss, loneliness, distress and conflicts with their partners.

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Mom protects her young children from a swarm of bees as she's stung 75 times

She quickly picked her children up and got them to safety while risking herself.

Good Morning America|YouTube

Mom stung 75 times trying to protect her kids from bees

Bees are probably one of the most confusing insects right now because they're endangered, but also your instinct is to slap them away if they get too close. Bee stings hurt and their being on the endangered list doesn't make their stings any more pleasant. But with warm weather and flowers come bees ready to carry pollen on their furry bee legs and make delicious honey.

As long as they conduct their business away from people with exposed body parts, people tend to leave them alone. Again, being stung kinda sucks. Unfortunately, humans and bees cross paths fairly often, and for one mom in Arizona, that meant she and her children experienced a terrifying ordeal when running into a swarm.

The mom was trying to get pictures of her daughters in a field of flowers after Arizona had a "super bloom," when they were attacked by a swarm of bees.

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