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Overview
Depression...more than a bad hair day.
Everyone gets sad sometimes - a brief blue mood, feelings of disappointment, or the more serious grief after losing a loved one. Depression is not a mere case of the blues; it's more than a period of sadness. Depression is a common medical illness. More than 18 million Americans suffer from some type of depression and one in eight people needs treatment for depression during his or her lifetime.
Depression is not a character flaw. It is neither a "mood" nor a personal weakness that you can change at will or by "pulling yourself together." And it requires treatment, just like diabetes, asthma, or heart disease.
The good news is, depression can be treated and managed successfully. Even people with severe depression can lead normal productive lives - if they are aware of their condition. Unfortunately many people don't know enough about depression to recognize the symptoms.
To help yourself, or a loved one, you must educate yourself and then take action. Early detection of depression improves the likelihood for rapid and effective treatment.
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Types of Depression
There are many different types of Depression with the most common being Major Depression, Dysthymia, Seasonal Depression, and Bipolar Disorder. Each of these types is characterized by distinct symptoms and treated accordingly.
Major Depression is an illness many doctors believe is related to an imbalance of a natural chemical in the body called serotonin. It can be triggered by a traumatic event or it can develop with no apparent cause. People with depression usually feel tired; they have persistent feelings of worthlessness, guilt, or sadness; they lack motivation and lose interest in activities enjoyed previously. They may have thoughts of suicide. Major depression will not simply run its course and then go away. Left untreated, depression can result in years of needless pain for the depressed person and his or her family.
Dysthymia is a milder type of depression. It doesn't strike in clear - cut episodes like depression. Instead, its symptoms tend to be milder and persistent, they may last for years. This type of depression may be hard to recognize in a loved one, friend, or even yourself because its symptoms are mild and usually don't interfere with everyday living. Nevertheless, people with dysthymia rarely feel like they're functioning at full capacity.
Seasonal Depression (sometimes called "seasonal affective disorder" or SAD) may result from a change in the balance of brain chemicals associated with decreased sunlight. Seasonal depression often starts in late fall and ends in spring, when the days get longer. Only recently identified, several studies suggest that seasonal depression may be successfully treated using therapy with light.
Bipolar Disorder (also called manic depression) is an illness in which one's mood changes between depression and elation for no apparent reason.
To help with diagnosis, doctors look for signs and symptoms of depression and assess their severity, duration, and effects on everyday life.
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Signs and Symptoms of Depression
Depression is a medical illness that disrupts your life. It involves your whole body. Depression affects your thoughts, emotions, behavior, and the way you feel about yourself. Depression can also change the way you think and feel about other people, about situations at work or in a social setting, or even about things such as your garden, your house, or your clothing. The term depression refers to:
- A persistent sad mood and/or
- Loss of interest or pleasure in most activities
And is accompanied by some of the following symptoms:
- Changes in appetite or weight
- Changes in sleep patterns
- Restlessness or decreased activity that is noticeable to others
- Loss of energy or feeling tired all the time
- Difficulty in concentrating or making decisions
- Feelings of worthlessness or inappropriate guilt
- Recurrent thoughts of death or suicide
For a doctor to make a diagnosis of depression, these symptoms must have lasted at least 2 weeks, and be troublesome enough to cause a person distress or interfere with work, social life, or daily functioning.
If you think you or someone you know may suffer from depression, take the simple Self-Assessment on this site. Your answers to the Self-Assessment can help your doctor or other healthcare professional learn if you may have symptoms of depression. Only a doctor or other qualified healthcare professional can make a diagnosis of depression.
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Causes of Depression
The exact cause of depression is not clear. No one is sure why some people get depressed and others do not. Sometimes, depression seems to happen because of a stressful event. Sometimes it seems to happen for no reason at all.
Genes may play a role. People whose blood relatives have had depression are more likely to have it, too. However, not everyone who has a relative with depression is going to develop it.
Today, it is widely recognized that depression is a medical condition that may be associated with an imbalance in the delicate chemistry of the brain. If this imbalance occurs, it can affect the way people feel and the way they see the world. It is thought a deficiency of a brain chemical called serotonin may play a role in depression. Recent studies also suggest a nutrient deficiency may be a factor in the illness.
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Treatments
Depression is Treatable
Like other illnesses such as diabetes or high blood pressure, depression is a real illness with real causes. A visit to the doctor and a clear diagnosis begin the process of healing.
Treatments for clinical depression may include, but are not limited to:
- Prescription medications (antidepressants)
- Psychotherapy
- Natural therapy (Nutrition and Lifestyle changes)
In extreme cases, electroconvulsive therapy (also called "shock therapy") may be an appropriate treatment.
Often a combination of treatments is the most effective approach to relieving symptoms of depression.
Family and Friends
One important thing family and friends can do for those who are depressed is to help them get appropriate diagnosis and treatment. This may mean getting them to see a doctor in the first place, or encouraging them to stay with treatment until they feel better.
It is also important to offer emotional support in the following ways:
- Acknowledge that the person is suffering
- Express affection, offer kind words, give sincere compliments
- Show that you respect and value the person
- Help the person keep active and busy
- Don't expect the person to just "snap out of it"
- Don't criticize, pick on, or blame the person for his/her behavior
- Don't say or do anything that might worsen the person's poor self-image
- Don't ignore any talk of suicide; notify a member of the person's family or his or her doctor immediately
People who have been successfully treated for depression - and there are millions of them - say that being able to beat depression made them realize how strong they were. And once they got back to being themselves, they appreciated life even more.
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