Do you find the company you keep dictates your mood? Have you have spent time around an unhappy individual only to find yourself feeling down? What if I told you spending time with someone who is blue can affect more than just your mood? If that person is facing depression, you risk experiencing depression too.

A recent study involving freshmen, conducted by Notre Dame University, showed that roommates paired with individuals who had negative thinking styles, meaning they constantly focused on everything bad in their lives, often began to display these thinking styles themselves. So, while diagnosed depression did not appear contagious, negative thinking was, and it caused the healthier individual to later display more than double the number of depressive symptoms versus individuals paired with positive roommates.

So, how do you stop this problem before it begins?

First, spend time away from the depressed individual. Enjoy healthy company, participate in favorite activities, have some fun and always prioritize taking care of yourself.

Next, seek professional counseling. With the assistance of a therapist, explore your feelings and vent frustrations. This leads to healing.

Eventually, you might convince that important person in your life to seek counseling too, helping their healing to begin.