I don’t know if it’s the economy, or worry about keeping my job, or just trying to “keep up,” but I’ve been feeling really “down” the last few months, and it’s not like me.

I have trouble sleeping, I’m more irritable than usual and don’t feel like doing anything when I come home. My wife wants me to see a doctor, but I don’t like taking that step. Is there something else I can consider first? —Bill M.

A. Frankly, I vote with your wife. It sounds like you have some of the usual symptoms of depression. Focused on the workplace, depression may look like this:

• Working slowly

• Making mistakes more often

• Unable to concentrate

• Forgetful

• Late for work or meetings

• Not showing up

• Getting into disputes and arguments with colleagues

• Unable to delegate tasks

• Working, or trying to work, much too hard

Bill, you’re not alone. Depression is a common illness. At some point in their lives, about 1 in every 5 women and 1 in every 10 men will suffer from depression. In any one year about 3 in every 10 employees will have a mental health problem, and depression is one of the most common. According to a recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association, depressed workers lost about 5.6 hours a week because of health problems, compared with the average of 1.5 hours. Two good sources o information on depression are the National Mental Health Association (800-969-NMHA) or The National Institute of Mental Health (800-421-4211). Some of their observations:

Depression isn’t just troublesome for those who are struggling with it. It also makes them less productive at work and is responsible for high rates of sick leave, accidents and staff turnover. It also sounds like you’ve taken the road many people do: they just try to keep working, painfully aware that they aren’t doing their job as well as they usually do. If your doctor recognizes your depression, you can be helped, and you’ll get back much more quickly to you normal performance at work—and at home.

Talk to Co-Workers

Co-workers are often in a good position to notice when someone is becoming depressed. It can be really helpful to hear that people are worried about you. Over coffee or lunch, perhaps, ask a few people who work closely with you what they think about your behavior; tell them your concerns. The earlier someone consults his or her family doctor, the quicker and more effective treatment is likely to be.

Managers or employers can also help. If the depression is severe, they may need to allow an employee to take some time off work, as well as make allowances when he or she returns to work. Most people who get treatment for depression can return to work within a few weeks. Even so, many employees are afraid of talking about their depression because they fear it might affect their job security. People also worry that antidepressant medications can be addictive, but there is no evidence for this. Most people with depression will recover completely and will be able to start working again as usual.

Is It The Work?

It’s also possible that the problems you’re experiencing come from working conditions. For most people, a steady and rewarding job can really help to reduce the risk of depression. So it stands to reason that people who have recently been laid off, or who have been out of work for many months, are more likely to become depressed than those who are able to carry on working.

Poor working conditions aren’t likely to cause depressive illness directly, but undue pressure and stress at work can combine with other problems, such as difficulties at home or recent unhappy events, and contribute to depression. Jobs in which an employee can’t use his or her skills, or which are repetitive, and are the same every day, seem most likely to make people fed up with their work. Uncertainty about how well you are performing, or about future changes in employment, can also result in feelings of tension and worry. 'Difficult' bosses who bully and criticize will make things even worse. Poor working conditions, such as cramped offices, noisy factories and hot and stuffy shops may also make workers tense and stressed.

And there’s more: Employees feel frustrated if they have no say in the way their work is organized, or if decisions are imposed from above without any discussion. The introduction of new timesaving computer systems has made offices more efficient. At the same time, this often brings pressing deadlines and demands for quicker decisions, which can actually make the work more stressful.