Signs of depression can vary from mild to severe. The severe depression is usually a psychiatric problem and such people need prolonged periods of treatment before they show any improvement. The person should go through psychotherapy and also get support from the family members to overcome the problem or at least to be able to deal with it. If the problem is severe enough to endanger the life of the person and he or she has suicidal tendencies, then it is better to admit them to a clinic for in house treatment. These clinics have trained staff who know how to cope with such situations and can call in doctors who are qualified to help whenever required. The medication and diet of the person is monitored carefully and so are the activities. These patients need a regular routine of treatment and physical activities and this can be done only with in house treatment.
If the home atmosphere is not conducive to the person welfare then it is better to put them in a place where they get the kind of care and attention which will help them. Often people get into this state of severe depression because of unhappy home atmosphere, parents who have separated, drug and alcohol abuse and other bad childhood experiences. Constant criticism is another reason that people go into severe depression and this can have long standing effects on their mental state. Signs of depression will improve if the person is cared for and kept happy with timely medication and a nourishing diet.