Depression on the job can show the way to missed meetings, unanswered phone calls, blankly staring at the computer screen, indecision, late arrival, leaving early and neglect deadlines. A working woman suffering from depression might not get along with colleges anymore or she may withdraw from social participation.

These are all symptoms of depression. 21 percent of the women in the workplace are affected depression through to their work performance and their everyday lives. Depression is a very human illness. Before the dealing with problem, it is important to understand the signs of depression that may affect working women.

Depression may be kicked off by satisfying a home life and be a superior working person. When the brain chemicals become uneven it will take some time to get them balanced. The depression may completely change your personality and behavior. Your colleagues and friends will notice it first. The working women may find herself becoming a wild women, spending money like crazy, hyper, drinking more, or having affairs. It is not strange to find depressed women living out of their cars or a small hotel room.

The depressed woman may notice herself alone on her birthday as her friends and family slowly discard her. Depression will also make you feel unloved. 30% of working women suffering from depression either quit or lose a job.

For a working woman, when depression goes too far she may find herself unable to function. Few women admit they have a mental problem, so they will keep struggling along danger of their careers and family relationships. Just 47% of women identify help in right away.

Depression in the workplace is the number one blockade to success. A depressed woman at work will find herself feeling constantly unsatisfied. Depression is a sickness and should be treated properly. No matter how successful the working woman is in work, the depression will cause her to feel distressing and disgruntled.

Scientific findings state that depression could lead to obesity. Appetite goes increasing if one is suffering with depression. It may be due the sufferer wants to divert his mind. Depression can decrease your rate of performing activities and bound you to sit idle and hence results in weight gain.

Second opinion states that obesity could lead to depression. People do receive negative comments and are made fun of for their extra pounds. This humiliation and heart burn can actually push them into the stage of depression. Obesity disables a person to enjoy various activities that makes him to stand away from the masses and in turn leads him to depression.

Whether the chicken came first or the egg came first may not be that important. This is an established fact that loosing your weight can be fruitful for you since it also lower down your level of anxiety and hence depression.

Thereafter you can improve the quality of your life and establish good relationships. Practicing weight loss programs do improve your inner personality as well and gives you sound confidence to stand in society. On the other hand, if you get failed in the program or the cycles of weight loss – weight gain can lead you with depression.

There is also justification where cases have been seen where people suffering with depression start loosing their health and hence body weight. Therefore resultant statement can be expressed that depression obviously does not make you fat. If it would be the reason of obesity then every body suffering with depression would have put on his body weight and vice versa can also be not ignored.

A new study published on June 16 in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) now threatens to send researchers back to the drawing board. The meta-analysis of 14 prior studies concludes that the so-called depression gene — a variant of a serotonin-transporter gene called 5-HTTLPR — may not be associated with an elevated risk for depression, as many researchers had believed.

“Knowing whether or not you have this gene is irrelevant,” says the study’s co-author Kathleen Merikangas, a genetic epidemiologist at the National Institute of Mental Health, who adds that future studies of genetic risk factors for depression should broaden their scope and consider the interactions of many genes rather than the actions of just one.

The discovery by Duke psychologist Avshalom Caspi of a “depression gene,” which was among the first to be associated with mental illness — a notably difficult class of diseases to pin down, genetically speaking — inspired dozens of similar studies.

While many researchers had suspected that 5-HTTLPR played a significant role in depression risk, Caspi was the first to establish an association by studying depressed people who had also experienced a stressful life event, such as the death of a child or sudden unemployment.

What Caspi’s 2003 epidemiological study, published in Science, found was that people with one or two copies of the short allele of the gene appeared to be more vulnerable to depression after a stressful event than people without the gene. Subsequent studies have looked at 5-HTTLPR’s role in related conditions such as posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety and neuroticism — with mixed results.

But the new JAMA study, which reviewed 14 studies involving 14,250 participants on the interaction between the serotonin-transporter gene and stressful life events, found no such association with depression risk. The study goes on to caution that any potential use of 5-HTTLPR as a screening tool for depression risk would be invalid. Currently, no such test exists, although several genetic-testing companies, including 23andME and Navigenics, do use genetic markers to tell customers which antidepressant drugs they are more likely to respond to.

“My concern is that [these tests] are being marketed to the public as if there is no question about it,” says Merikangas, speaking generally about direct-to-consumer genomic tests that purport to offer people any truly predictive health advice. “Some people might understand that it is not a death sentence to them, but to others who are struggling, it could lead them not to have children or get married.”

Merikangas’ meta-analysis has plenty of its own detractors, particularly among the scientists whose work it refutes. “This article ignores the complete body of scientific evidence,” says psychologist Caspi, who sent TIME.com an e-mail appended with 22 citations of studies that support his findings. “In the past six years, extensive research in experimental neuroscience using both animals and humans has validated the original report by showing that the 5-HTTLPR short allele-carriers are excessively vulnerable to stress,” he says.

“Meta-analyses can be a steamroller,” says Alexandre Todorov, a genetic epidemiologist at Washington University in St. Louis, Mo., whose 2007 peer-reviewed study was included in the JAMA piece. (While Todorov’s study found an association between the gene and depression, it was based on a different variant — the long allele as opposed to the short one.) “If you have three studies and two find nothing and the third finds something significant, that does not mean that the third study is not real.”

Where most genetics researchers do agree, however, is on the fact that uncovering the genetic roots of depression — and most diseases, for that matter — is a complex task. “We have about 30,000 genes, and it is hard to pick just one and analyze it,” says Dr. Hans Joergen Grabe of Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-University of Greifswald in Stralsund, Germany.

Although his 2005 study also found a correlation between the 5-HTTLPR gene and depression among the unemployed, “the magnitude of the effect is very small — if the effect does really exist, it will only produce depression in very rare cases, about 5 or 10 out of 1,000.” Grabe is now studying genes involved in the function of the “stress axis” of the body (the hypothalamus, pituitary and adrenal glands), since those are known to go haywire during major depression.

So what does this mean for anyone who is struggling with depression? The science of linking specific genes to the disorder is still in its infancy, so no one should worry that their genes alone doom them to a life of sorrow. And while no single treatment works for every patient, there are many — including simple physical exercise or strengthening social relationships — that can help to lift the blues.

More information on Depression

“This study bolsters the argument that a lack of sleep can cause depression,” said study author James Gangwisch, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center in New York City. “Teens with earlier parental-mandated bedtimes were less likely to suffer from depression and suicidal thoughts.”

Gangwisch was to present the findings Tuesday at the Associated Professional Sleep Societies annual meeting, in Seattle.

The study stemmed from data on more than 15,000 adolescents who participated in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.

The researchers found that 1,143 of the teens were depressed and 2,038 had suicidal ideation, the term clinicians use to describe suicidal thinking. Dr. Jonathan Pletcher, an adolescent medicine specialist from Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, pointed out that suicidal thoughts are common in teenagers, which is why the study included more teens with suicidal thoughts than depressed adolescents.

“A lot of teens have suicidal thoughts, but there’s a big difference between suicidal ideation and being suicidal,” Pletcher said.

When Gangwisch and his research team looked at the relationship of depression and suicidal thoughts to parental-mandated bedtimes, they found a clear correlation.

Teens whose parents insist on 10 p.m. or sooner for lights out were 25 percent less likely to be depressed and 20 percent less likely to have suicidal thoughts, compared with kids who hit the sack at midnight or later.

Gangwisch said he adjusted the data to account for numerous factors, including parental connectedness and the age of the teens, because older teens probably would have later bedtimes. After controlling for these factors, he said, it was clear that a lack of sleep was to blame for the increased risk of depression and suicidal thoughts.

“Kids that have to go to bed earlier are getting more sleep,” he said.

Pletcher said it’s likely that a combination of factors accounted for the increased risk. “There’s a bi-directional relationship between depression and sleep,” he said. “Teens who get less sleep may be more anxious and more likely to feel badly. But, I think this study’s findings also speak to a connection between the teen and their parents and their ability to work together.”

Forbes has more Information on Depression

For people with a history of depression or bipolar disorder, the risk of relapse looms like a cloud over their lives, threatening to separate them from their work, relationships, even their children. Stress, sleep deprivation, hormonal shifts, and stopping treatment are among the most common relapse triggers.

Signs – Symptoms of Depression:

* Depressed people usually possess the following characteristics.

* Persistent sad mood
* Difficulty in concentration and unusual forgetfulness
* Slowness in actions and thinking
* Extreme pessimism and feeling of worthlessness
* Suicidal thoughts
* Feeling of not being loved by anybody and life has no meaning
* Low drive or motivation
* Unexplained feeling of fatigue
* Rapid gain or loss of body weight and inability to experience appetite
* Sleep disturbances mainly during early morning hours
* Palpitation
* Disturbances in the stomach
* Intolerance to sound
* Increased sensitivity and unexplained feelings of guilt.

The National Mental Health Information Center at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services lists numerous triggers. Here are five:
• Interpersonal friction
• Feeling overwhelmed or having too much to do
• Being judged or criticized
• Ending a relationship
• Physical illness

Sometimes the signs of dangerous stress are more subtle. Laura Gilmartin, 38, an office manager in Skokie, Ill., finds herself eating more junk food or smoking more than usual. “Or if I find myself coming home from work and falling into bed more than two days in a row, that gets me scared. The more time I want to spend in bed the more I know I need to get out of bed.”

Delay decisions during relapse

The temptation to stop treatment on your own is another trigger, one that can lead to a downward spiral. Mary, 45, of Western Massachusetts, almost landed in the hospital during a suicidal depressive episode when she decided to go cold turkey. “What happens is I begin to feel great, and I rationalize that less is better when it comes to medication,” she says.

If you are in the midst of a relapse, it’s critical to realize that your outlook on everything is altered, and it’s unlikely that you will be aware of your lack of perspective. “So to the extent possible, important decisions should be delayed,” says Richard Raskin, PhD, a licensed psychologist in New York City.

Lisa, 42, a real estate broker in Huntington, N.Y., has been battling depression for years and can now steel herself against relapses. During the past year, she and her husband separated, and though she felt sad, she used the tools she learned in therapy to keep perspective. “I wasn’t depressed. I think that’s a testament of what talk therapy and medication can do. Ten years ago that would have put me in the grave.”

Guide for this: Health

The Basics to Practice Every Day

1. Move More

Make it a daily challenge to find ways to move your body. Climb stairs if given achoice between that and escalators or elevators. Walk your dog; chase your kids; toss balls with friends, mow the lawn. Anything that moves your limbs is not only a fitness tool, it’s a stress buster. Think ‘move’ in small increments of time. It doesn’t have to be an hour in the gym or a 45-minute aerobic dance class or tai chi or kickboxing. But that’s great when you’re up to it. Meanwhile, move more. Thought for the day: Cha, Cha, Cha…. Then do it!

2. Cut Fat
Avoid the obvious such as fried foods, burgers and other fatty meats (i.e. pork, bacon, ham, salami, ribs and sausage). Dairy products such as cheese, cottage cheese, milk and cream should be eaten in low fat versions. Nuts and sandwich meats, mayonnaise, margarine, butter and sauces should be eaten in limited amounts. Most are available in lower fat versions such as substitute butter, fat free cheeses and mayonnaise. Thought for the day: Lean, mean, fat-burning machine…. Then be one!

3. Quit Smoking
The jury is definitely in on this verdict. Ever since 1960 when the Surgeon General announced that smoking was harmful to your health, Americans have been reducing their use of tobacco products that kill. Just recently, we’ve seen a surge in smoking in adolescents and teens. Could it be the Hollywood influence? It seems the stars in every movie of late smoke cigarettes. Beware. Warn your children of the false romance or ‘tough guy’ stance of Hollywood smokers. Thought for the day: Give up just one cigarette…. the next one.

4. Reduce Stress
Easier said than done, stress busters come in many forms. Some techniques recommended by experts are to think positive thoughts. Spend 30 minutes a day doing something you like. (i.e.,Soak in a hot tub; walk on the beach or in a park; read a good book; visit a friend; play with your dog; listen to soothing music; watch a funny movie. Get a massage, a facial or a haircut. Meditate. Count to ten before losing your temper or getting aggravated. Avoid difficult people when possible. Thought for the day: When seeing red, think pink clouds….then float on them.

5. Protect Yourself from Pollution
If you can’t live in a smog-free environment, at least avoid smoke-filled rooms, high traffic areas, breathing in highway fumes and exercising near busy thoroughfares. Exercise outside when the smog rating is low. Exercise indoors in air conditioning when air quality is good. Plant lots of shrubbery in your yard. It’s a good pollution and dirt from the street deterrent. Thought for the day: ‘Smoke gets in your eyes’…and your mouth, and your nose and your lungs as do pollutants….hum the tune daily.

6. Wear Your Seat Belt
Statistics show that seat belts add to longevity and help alleviate potential injuries in car crashes. Thought for the day: Buckle down and buckle up.

7. Floss Your Teeth
Recent studies make a direct connection between longevity and teeth flossing. Nobody knows exactly why. Perhaps it’s because people who floss tend to be more health conscious than people who don’t? Thought for the day: Floss and be your body’s boss.

8. Avoid Excessive Drinking
While recent studies show a glass of wine or one drink a day (two for men) can help protect against heart disease, more than that can cause other health problems such as liver and kidney disease and cancer. Thought for the day: A jug of wine should last a long time.

9. Keep a Positive Mental Outlook
There’s a definitive connection between living well and healthfully and having a cheerful outlook on life. Thought for the day: You can’t be unhappy when you’re smiling or singing.

10. Choose Your Parents Well
The link between genetics and health is a powerful one. But just because one or both of your parents died young in ill health doesn’t mean you cannot counteract the genetic pool handed you. Thought for the day: Follow these basic tips for healthy living and you can better control your own destiny.