135 Couples Told Scientists How Depression Affects Their Relationships

Related: Kristen Bell Writes About Her Experience With Depression

Previous studies, as it turns out, focused on individuals, but for this report, three researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign gathered stories from couples — 135 of them, to be exact, of which either one partner, or both, had a history of depression. The people within the couples ranged in age from 20 to 83, and had been together as little as six months or as long as 46 years. It’s a qualitative study, meaning no wacky experiments necessary, thank you. Instead, the researchers simply recorded the experiences of each couple, who together tackled the not-so-simple question, ”In what ways, if any, do feelings of sadness or depression affect your romantic relationship?”