 Hey Psych2Colors, welcome back. Have you ever wondered what the difference is between depression and laziness? Depression and laziness have a lot in common, both can result in a lack of productivity and a general inability to function through life's challenges. A person who is feeling down after a hard day at work may come home wanting nothing more than to lay in their bed all day. But does feeling lethargic make you lazy? Or is it more than that? Here are the differences you should know between laziness and depression. 1. Length of time. Do you feel an extreme sense of sadness and lethargy throughout the day? Or does it only happen every so often? Depression is labeled as a persistent feeling of being sad, hopeless, and empty over a long period of time. When you're depressed, it feels like nothing can ever make you feel happy no matter what you try. You can't find it within yourself to do anything, whether it's good for you or not. Laziness is a bit different. Unlike depression, it isn't a psychological disorder, it's a momentary state. Feeling lethargy from time to time is common for everyone, that's just the body recovering from stress or lack of sleep. But usually after a good night's rest or a moment of relaxation, your body will feel refreshed again and can function on a day-to-day basis. 2. Sense of control. Do you feel like a new reward can cause a shift in your motivation to accomplish a task? For people with depression, working towards a goal or something that brings them happiness is too much. They struggle to find the energy within themselves to take action and they often think they don't deserve anything better. That everything is hopeless and there's no point in doing things as they feel they have no control over their actions. For lazy people, they usually lack motivation to do the things that are expected of them. The reasons for this are plenty, perhaps they don't like their boss, aren't fulfilled at work or have too many things to do. But once a lazy person is placed in the right environment, they'll feel much more motivated to be productive. For people with depression, their mental faculties make them feel largely indifferent towards most things, making it harder for them to get out of the rut. Usually professional intervention is necessary. 3. Chemical imbalance. The brains of people with depression are noticeably more different than lazy people, based on fMRI scans. In a study published in the Journal of Neuroscience, the hippocampus of participants who had a history of depression reported 9% to 13% smaller size compared to those without depression. This means fewer serotonin receptors or the chemical that regulates mood. This can also be linked with stress, a major factor of depression, which can slow down the production of new neurons in the hippocampus. People who feel lazy, however, don't have as much of these major brain alterations as depressed people. While there could be overlaps and symptoms, depression is a serious psychological disorder where parts of the brain like the amygdala, thalamus, and hippocampus are wired differently and contribute to one's depressive mind states. 4. Excessive worry. Do you catch yourself having self-defeating thoughts in constant ruminations? Rumination, the persistent focus on negative feelings, is a common symptom of depression. Ruminating can also force people to isolate themselves, which can worsen one's depressive mood. People who ruminate tend to be perfectionists and overvalue their relationships with others, even if it's not an unhealthy one. People who are lazy usually don't get caught up by ruminations or critical thoughts and aren't worried about things that happened in the past, but may be concerned about the consequences of their future through their lack of action. 5. Depression affects your physical health. Depression is known to not just affect your state of mind, but also your physical health and well-being. For instance, depressed people are more likely to have trouble concentrating and memory lost due to the rewiring in their brains, especially older adults. Insomnia, constricted blood vessels, fatigue, and weakened immune systems are all some of the more common symptoms of depression, which can affect your overall health. Lazy people are less likely to be affected by physical health issues, unlike people with depression. They may sometimes feel fatigued due to not sleeping enough or making poor diet choices, but laziness doesn't have a major impact on the body, like depression does. So can you relate to any of the signs and symptoms mentioned? If so, let us know in the comments. We hope you've learned the difference between depression and laziness. And if you liked this video, share it with someone who you think might benefit. As always, the references and studies used are listed in the description below. Thanks so much for watching, take care, and we'll see you next time.