What is depression?
Depression is a very common problem. A lot of adults will experience symptoms of depression at some point. In more mild forms depression does not prevent you from living a normal life, but the most severe forms of depression can be life-threatening, with thoughts of death and suicide. It is important in both of the cases to be able to identify that you are suffering from depression and know how to fight depression.
These are some of the signs or symptoms you might experience if you have depression.
Emotions or feelings
Feelings of sadness, guilt, distress, despair or numbness
Loss of interest in anything and getting no pleasure from anything
Frequent crying or feelings that you cannot cry.
Feeling of loneliness, even if you’re with friends.
Physiological or physical signs
Fatigue.
Concern.
Problems sleeping, especially waking early or disturbed sleeps.
Feel worse at a particular time of day (usually morning).
Changes in appetite, eating and weight.
Some people also experience intense migraine headaches which are mainly caused through stress
Thoughts
Lose the belief in yourself.
Expect the worst and having negative or melancholic thoughts
Thinking that everything seems hopeless.
Thoughts of suicide.
You think that you hate yourself.
Poor memory or concentration.
How these feelings, physical signs and thoughts may affect your life:
It may be difficult to do even the simple things.
You will not be able to do your normal activities.
Isolate yourself from other people.
You may end up not doing anything for long periods.
You may feel that you should control everything twice.
Of course, not all these symptoms are present to people with depression. Even if you have severe depression, is common to feel some of these things periodically. This is especially true if you have recently suffered a loss and especially if someone very close to you has died. When these symptoms are part of a normal reaction to loss or painful events, will be resolved with the passage of time. Most people find it helpful to talk about these feelings with someone who cares. But if these feelings are too intense or continue for some time, they may develop into depression. When this happens, you need to take measures on how to fight depression yourself and / or seek help from others.
What causes depression?
There is no single cause for depression. Usually there is more than one cause and they vary from person to person, but can sometimes occur without any apparent reason. As already mentioned, painful events can make someone start to feel depressed and sometimes it can be transformed into a more serious depression from which it is difficult to recover. The conditions may play a role. Thus, being alone, to have to live with a very low income, physical illness and unemployment can all contribute towards depression. Sometimes several different factors cause depression. In some cases, even the events that may be regarded as good and positive, like to get married or to start a new job can be stressful enough to cause depression. The birth of a child can also lead to a depression for one in ten women. Different people will fight depression in different ways, and although many may be sad and depressed, some try to fight depression in other ways, such as excessive drinking or irritability. One in ten people who have severe depression may also have periods where they are in agitation, with uncontrolled behaviour. This is known as depression mania and affects equally men and women.
Some people are more likely to experience depression than others?
Some people seem to be more vulnerable than others to become depressed. This may be due to body composition (including body chemistry) or in early life experiences and family influences. Some people may be more predisposed to «see the negative side» of life in general and this may increase the likelihood of developing a depression.
How to fight depression?
Even if you have a doctor or mental health specialist involved in your treatment, there are things you can do to fight depression.
1. Do something active
Physical activity is particularly helpful. Walking, running, cycling and everything that starts to increase your activity can help to improve how you feel. Schedule 15 or 20 minutes of activity every day or every other day at first. This type of physical activity can actually begin to make you feel less tired. Find something of interest and spent some time on this. Plan to focus on things you usually enjoy and find some time each day for 5 of these activities. You can find it supportive to deal with a new interest. Many people find that creative activities such as painting, writing poetry or playing music, help them express their emotions and make them feel better.
Make a small beginning in jobs or obligations that you avoided, split large tasks into smaller steps and start working with them one by one. For example, there may be jobs in the home or garden that really needs to be done, but you continuously postpone them. If so, began the first day to tackle one small area. In this way, you do not set too high goals and you have a greater chance to achieve your objective and this will make you feel good.
2. Talk to other people
Try to tell those close to you how you feel. They may be able to listen and help you reflect on things. To cry can sometimes help to relieve tension and let things go. You may be impressed to find out those who talk with you and had the same depression at some point can understand you better on how you feel.
3. Look after yourself
Resist the temptation to fight your depression with alcohol, make poor use of medication or to switch to illegal drugs. These may give some immediate relief, but very soon you create additional health problems and psychological problems to be faced.
Eat well; a good diet can help to keep in good health so recovery is easier.
Try to «offer» yourself things you normally enjoy.
4. Let go of your negative thoughts
Do not let the pessimistic thoughts pass without question. When someone is experiencing depression, often tends to think and expect the worst of himself, his life and future. Do not just accept these thoughts; try the following to fight depression by eliminating your negative thoughts:
Identify when your mood is not good
Note the unpleasant thoughts you have during that time
Try to challenge these thoughts by recording arguments against them. Imagine what would you said to a friend who had such negative thoughts about himself
Try to keep a diary of things that have enjoyed or achieved during the week.
This can help to focus on good things rather than the bad things in your life.
What kind of treatment is available in order to fight depression?
Most people are monitored for depression by their family doctor. Your doctor may recommend a treatment for pills or antidepressants or both. Your doctor can refer to a mental health specialist. This could be a psychiatrist, or can be a consultant, a Community psychiatric nurse, a psychologist or other mental health specialist. The treatments are usually counselling or psychotherapy. These will help you understand your own difficulties and begin to find ways to overcome depression. The «Cognitive therapy» is a kind of therapy often used. It can help people to challenge the negative thoughts and to continue with their lives.
Any kind of treatment used, it usually takes some time before starting to feel the benefits, but such treatment has helped many people and can be very effective. Sometimes people get antidepressants after a prescription by their family doctor or psychiatrist. These have shown that they are supporting for many people suffering from depression. The antidepressants affect chemicals in the brain and make you feel less depressed. It is addictive and once you start to feel better, can arrange with your doctor to stop the medication, usually after several months. This will not cause you any difficulty and your doctor will gradually adjust and reduce the dose. When you start a dosage of antidepressants, it is important to remember that they do not immediately bring the desired result. It will take 2-4 weeks until you get the desired result and you should continue to take them regularly to feel the benefit. They may have some side effects initially, but they are usually quite mild and will generally go away slowly while continuing treatment. Your doctor or your pharmacist will advise you on this. Although people often start to feel better within 2-4 weeks taking antidepressants, it is important to continue to take as long as recommended by your doctor. This helps to prevent depression returning. If you take antidepressants, it is important to see the doctor before you take any other pills, drugs or alcohol.
Where can I get more help to fight depression?
If you think that you have depression, your physician is the best person to speak first. He can give you information about local services, which can help you fight depression.