Have you been in a steady relationship with your partner for quite some time?  If yes, then you must have shared a lot of nice memories and experiences with them. A good understanding partner can light up one's life and make it a wonderful experience.  If both of you are on the wrong side of thirty, then you can expect mid-life crisis come knocking on your doorsteps eventually. You should stay prepared for midlife crisis and check for telltale signs that indicate your partner is suffering from depression. As people approach the mid-life, they tend to become a bit reflective of their accomplishments and feel a sense of depression. Severe stress and depression at the workplace can result in low self-esteem in your partner. Beware, these are not symptoms that you should sweep under the carpet and behave everything is normal, as a good partner you should help your partner get healed of the malady.

Most often, the trust and support of a partner is a better medicine than going to the psychiatrist.  Here is a list of things that you can do to take your partner out of the shell and relieve their depression.

• It is ok to be imperfect: Most people strive to be perfect but it is an utopist thought that none of us can ever achieve. The inability to be perfect can result in low self-esteem, so you should assure your partner of the positive things that surround you. Do not lie to them in order to build up their self-esteem, make them understand that life is filled with failure and success in equal proportions.
• Accept them for who they are: Some people suffering from low self-esteem cannot come to terms with the fact that they could not achieve something in life. As a partner, you should assure them that failure is a part of life and they should be proud of their achievements. Accepting yourself for the person that you are with your own shortcomings is the first step out of the gloom of depression. You should ask yourself whether you are supportive enough towards your partner in their moments of failure as you there in success.
• Do not ignore the problems: Couples having busy careers in front of them tend to sweep all their problems under the carpet without solving them. This aggravates the situation even more and the implications are seen in other aspects of life.  If you see that your partner is not interested in their favorite activities from quite some time then it is a sign of depression, ask them immediately if there is something wrong.  A simple "how was your day at work?" spoken with conviction can make your partners relieve their stress by talking it out.

If you are feeling completely clueless and do not know how to relieve your partner's pain then you should go to see a counselor together. If your partner is suffering from low self-esteem issues then it is your problem as well because you are on the journey together.