depression n. the black dog

[This term was popularized by Winston Churchill in reference to his own depression, although the term long pre-dates him The lexicographer Samuel Johnson used the term in the 1780s for his own depression: “When I rise my breakfast is solitary, the black dog waits to share it, from breakfast to dinner he continues barking.”]

Depression is easier to beat when it’s treated quickly, so I’ll encourage her not to hesitate if she ever feels the black dog coming. Don’t walk, run. You might be running for your life. (Mary Grant, “There’s So Much to Say About Her Aunt’s Suicide, I Can’t Even Begin,” The New York Times, 12/14/2014.)