Depression
Depression is a serious illness. Health professionals use the
terms depression, depressive illness or clinical depression to
refer to something very different from the common experience of
feeling miserable or fed-up for a short period of time.
When you're depressed, you may have feelings of extreme sadness
that can last for a long time. These feelings are severe enough to
interfere with your daily life, and can last for weeks or months,
rather than days.
Depression is quite a common condition, and about 15% of people
will have a bout of severe depression at some point in their lives.
However, the exact number of people with depression is hard to
estimate because many people do not get help, or are not formally
diagnosed with the condition.
Women are twice as likely to suffer from depression as men,
although men are far more likely to commit suicide. This may be
because men are more reluctant to seek help for depression.
Depression can affect people of any age, including children.
Studies have shown that 2% of teenagers in the UK are affected by
depression.
People with a family history of depression are more likely to
experience depression themselves. Depression affects people in many
different ways and can cause a wide variety of physical,
psychological (mental) and social symptoms.
A few people still think that depression is not a real illness
and that it is a form of weakness or admission of failure. This is
simply not true. Depression is a real illness with real effects,
and it is certainly not a sign of failure. In fact, famous leaders,
such as Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln and Mahatma Gandhi, all
experienced bouts of depression.
If you're depressed you often lose interest in things that you
used to enjoy. Depression commonly interferes with your work,
social and family life. In addition, there are many other symptoms,
which can be physical, psychological and social.
Psychological symptoms:
- continuous low mood or sadness,
- feelings of hopelessness and helplessness,
- low self-esteem,
- tearfulness,
- feelings of guilt,
- feeling irritable and intolerant of others,
- lack of motivation and little interest in things,
- difficulty making decisions,
- lack of enjoyment,
- suicidal thoughts or thoughts of harming someone else,
- feeling anxious or worried, and
- reduced sex drive.
Physical symptoms:
- slowed movement or speech,
- change in appetite or weight (usually decreased, but sometimes
increased),
- constipation,
- unexplained aches and pains,
- lack of energy or lack of interest in sex,
- changes to the menstrual cycle, and
- disturbed sleep patterns (for example, problems going to sleep
or waking in the early hours of the morning).
Social symptoms:
- not performing well at work,
- taking part in fewer social activities and avoiding contact
with friends,
- reduced hobbies and interests, and
- difficulties in home and family life.
Grief and depression
Even though grief and depression share many of the same
characteristics, there are important differences between them.
Grief is an entirely natural response to a loss, while depression
is an illness. However, sometimes, it can be hard to distinguish
between feelings of grief and depression.
People who are grieving find that feelings of loss and sadness
come in waves, but they are still able to enjoy things and are able
to look forward to the future. However, those who are depressed
have a constant feeling of sadness; they do not enjoy anything and
have little sense of a positive future.
Additional information can be found on the
NHS UK website