“I’m depressed”, we have all said it at one point in our adult lives. Many of us have low points, times when there doesn’t seem to be an end to chaos or difficulties. Most of us manage to get through it and come out the other side getting on with normal life.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health around 7% of adults will experience depression. For someone who has depression, life is like a never ending dark cave. Many describe it as an unrelenting feeling of hopelessness and despair. It sounds dramatic, doesn’t it? Not to someone suffering from depression. It’s real, it’s an illness and not a character flaw or weakness. Many don’t even know they have depression until they are at breaking point.
There are numerous signs and symptoms of depression, many of which aren’t really separately identifiable from the symptoms of other conditions such as anxiety or how we act under periods of stress. If we can become self-aware and notice changes in our day-to-day being, we might be able to prevent the disabling nature of chronic depression.
Here are some symptoms to look out for:
1. Continuous low mood for a period of more than two weeks.
2. Changes in eating habits
3. Changes in sleeping patterns
4. Small things that didn’t used to, now make you angry
5. Loss of concentration or focus
6. Loss of enjoyment in activities which normally make you happy
7. Feelings of worthlessness
8. Preoccupied with negative thoughts
9. Anxiousness
10. Unexplained lack of energy
If you have been noticing around half of these symptoms for more than two weeks then you should see your GP. Your GP will help you to understand your symptoms and rule out any underlying medial condition.
One of the main treatments for depression initially is self-help. Many people will get better simply by knowing they have a condition. Some lifestyle changes such as exercise, eating healthy and sleeping around 7-9 hours each night can make a huge difference. It sounds obvious and maybe even a bit of a cop out, but it’s well researched and evidenced that exercise in particular has been proven to reduce stress hormones such as cortisol. Sleep repairs our body and helps our mind to file everything we have experienced during the day. It goes without saying that a healthy diet will improve physical wellbeing but there are significant studies that prove it is beneficial for the mind also.
For those where lifestyle changes are not making any difference a GP might recommend talking therapy such as counselling. For chronic and long-term cases, antidepressants may be prescribed.
