Adult depression is a clinical condition and not a diagnosis. It is usually referred to in the context of comparison with child depression or teen depression. It may seem surprising, but there are times when an adult depression can be easier than the mood disorder of a child that has been diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder. How can this be?
There are at least two ways to look at this question. First, an adult usually has more options for changing the cause of his or her adult depression than a child or teenager. An adult male may feel trapped in his job, but he has possibilities open to him such as quitting, looking for another job, or making his current job more tolerable by using it to finance his preparations and training for another line of work. In contrast, a child that feels trapped in his or her school may have no options if parents are not sympathetic.
Second, the diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) has three main levels of intensity: mild, moderate, and severe. Someone with adult depression who has been diagnosed with “mild” MDD is probably not suffering as much as a child who has been diagnosed with the severe level of MDD.