Depression is more than brain chemistry gone awry. Contributing factors range from social environments to learned patterns of thinking to stressful life events with a lasting impact. Circumstances like loneliness, financial strain, or health problems can put you at an even greater risk for a depressive episode.
When it comes to moods, all of us experience highs and lows. So how can you tell the difference between a simple slump and something more serious?
Common symptoms
Many of these symptoms are consistent with what you might expect of someone who feels low all the time.
- A pervading sense of heaviness has become your constant companion, affecting the way you live.
- When you consider the future, you feel hopeless and empty. You feel like you have nothing to look forward to.
- You’ve lost interest in the activities and people that once interested you. You know you used to enjoy something but cannot feel any of those old feelings.
- You’re finding it difficult to concentrate on tasks or make decisions and your memory for detail is diminished.
- Guilt, irritability, and other negative feelings overwhelm you. Many of your negative thoughts are directed inward.
Depression’s reach in your life is not limited to your state of mind; depression has many physiological effects as well.
- Depression changes how you sleep. You have trouble falling asleep, wake up much too early, or sleep for much longer than you need to.
- Your appetite is noticeably altered. You might feel perpetually hungry or uninterested in food.
- You feel fatigued, lacking the energy to do even simple things.
- Aches and pains persist despite traditional treatment. Headaches or indigestion appear without apparent cause.
How depression looks in your life depends on more than just brain chemicals. An older adult might not show the same signs of depression as a teenager. Like age, gender also plays a role in determining which symptoms a person exhibits.
Treatment
Depression results from the complex interplay of personal circumstances; the expression of each depressed person’s unhappiness can be unique.
Because the best course of treatment for you is not necessarily the best plan of action for someone else, reaching out to a doctor or therapist is an important first step to getting your life back on track.
Medication – Antidepressants are drugs that affect neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine. These neurotransmitters regulate your mood. Depending on the severity of your depression, medication could help give you the motivation you need to work toward happiness.
While antidepressants can help restore balance in your brain, medications prescribed for depression have side effects. Your reaction to a drug might be unpredictable, leading you to switch medications a few times before seeing positive results.
Therapy – Medications often work best when combined with therapies that help you walk through an experience as complex as depression. A good therapist helps you recognize and reduce negative thought patterns or destructive lifestyle choices.
In therapy, you gain invaluable tools for reacting realistically to events in your life. You might gain a new understanding of how a relationship or a job plays into your mental health. Simply talking to another person about how you’re feeling can relieve a heavy emotional weight.
Lifestyle Changes – Exercise, sleep, and nutrition can have serious effects on your mood. If you commit to regularly setting aside some time to take care of yourself, you could see drastic changes in your energy levels and outlook on life.
Change is inevitable in life and it can be painful. It’s normal to feel low sometimes. If feelings of sadness or emptiness begin distorting your perception of reality, you might benefit from learning better ways of coping with your difficult emotions.
