Depression is more than feeling low for a few days. Here are the signs, and clear guidance on when to seek help.
6 June 2026 · Clarity Wellbeing Clinic
Depression is more than feeling low for a few days. It is a persistent low mood and a loss of interest or pleasure in things you normally enjoy, lasting most of the day, most days, for at least two weeks, and affecting your daily life. If that sounds familiar, it is worth talking to someone. Depression is common, it is not a weakness, and it is very treatable.
Everyone has flat days. The question is whether the heaviness has settled in and stopped lifting.
Depression shows up across mood, body, and thinking.
In your mood and emotions, it often looks like persistent sadness or emptiness, losing interest in things that used to matter, irritability, and a sense of hopelessness or numbness.
In your body, it can bring exhaustion that rest does not fix, changes in sleep, eating more or less than usual, and a general slowing down or heaviness.
In your thinking, it tends to involve difficulty concentrating or making decisions, harsh self criticism, and feelings of worthlessness or guilt that are out of proportion to reality.
A low patch is usually tied to something specific and lifts within days as circumstances change. Depression is more pervasive. It lasts two weeks or more, colours everything rather than one area of life, and does not reliably shift with rest or good news. If you are not sure whether what you are feeling is burnout or depression, our post on burnout versus depression may help you tell them apart.
It is time to talk to someone if low mood and loss of interest have lasted more than two weeks, if they are affecting your work, relationships, or ability to function, or if rest and time have not made a difference. You do not need to be at rock bottom to deserve support. Earlier help is easier help.
Please reach out straight away if you feel persistently hopeless, or if you are having thoughts that life is not worth living or of harming yourself. These feelings are more common than people admit, they are treatable, and you deserve support with them now rather than later. There are contacts at the foot of this page.
This is the most important part. Depression responds well to treatment, including talking therapy and, for some people, support from a GP. Most people improve significantly with the right help. It can feel permanent from the inside, but it is not.
At Clarity Wellbeing Clinic in Nuneaton, we work with people through depression in a calm, confidential space, in person and online, to understand what is keeping it in place and find a way back to yourself. You can read more on our depression counselling page.
Persistent low mood and loss of interest lasting two weeks or more, along with changes in sleep and appetite, fatigue, difficulty concentrating, and feelings of worthlessness or hopelessness.
A low patch is usually short and tied to a specific cause. Depression lasts longer, affects all areas of life, and does not lift reliably with rest or a change in circumstances.
If symptoms last beyond two weeks, affect your daily life, or do not improve with rest. Seek help promptly if you feel hopeless or have thoughts of harming yourself.
Yes. Depression is very treatable. Talking therapy is effective, and most people improve significantly with the right support.
If low mood has settled in and will not lift, Get in touch when you're ready.
Clarity is not an emergency or crisis service, and our inbox is not monitored around the clock. If you are in distress or struggling to cope right now, please reach out straight away. You deserve support, and it is always okay to ask for it.