Clinical Depression
Clinical depression is really a phrase thrown
around in the mental health field in a general way, to reference other
diagnosable conditions. It is not officially a diagnosis. The types of clinical
depression you may be diagnosed with include:
Dysthymia
Major Depression
Bipolar Disorder
Below is a list of the symptoms often
experienced in these types of clinical depression:
- Depressed mood, feelings of sadness or emptiness
- Radical reduction in interest in or pleasure in nearly all daily
activities
- Significant weight loss or weight gain of 5% in the last 30 days
- Inability to sleep or oversleeping
- A physical or mental sense of feeling slowed down
- Fatigue or loss of energy everyday
- Feelings of worthlessness or excessive guilt nearly every day
- Diminished ability to concentrate
- Indecisiveness
- Frequent thoughts of death or suicide
- Impairment in functioning socially, in occupation, family etc.
- Increased irritability
Depression Symptoms
Possible Symptoms of Major Depression
- Depressed mood observed by self or others, lasting most of the day and
nearly every day.
- Increased irritability
- Lowered sex drive
- Diminished interest in daily activities
- Strong anxiety
- Paranoia
- Lack of pleasure in daily activities
- Loss of ability to laugh and experience joy in your daily life
- Stronger or diminished appetite resulting in weight loss or gain
- Insomnia or hypersomnia (oversleeping) on a regular basis
- Feeling slowed down in your ability to think or physically move
- Fatigue or loss of energy
- Feelings of worthlessness
- Excessive and inappropriate amounts of guilt
- Diminished ability to focus or concentrate
- Indecisiveness
- Impulsiveness
- Thoughts of death
- Thoughts of suicide
- Plan for suicide
- Suicide attempt
Areas Affected by Major Depression
- Physical symptoms
- Behavior problems
- Distorted thinking
- Mood and emotional difficulties
- Troubled relationships
- Specific situations that trigger episodes of depression
- Spiritual or symbolic meanings attached to depression
- The personal history that led to lifestyle patterns that seem related to
depression
- Physical aches and pains
- Family history of depression or mental illness
Depression-How It May Feel
- Things just seem "off" or "wrong."
- You don't feel hopeful or happy about anything in your life.
- You're crying a lot, either at nothing, or something that normally would
be insignificant.
- You feel like you're moving (and thinking) in slow motion.
- Getting up in the morning requires a lot of effort.
- Carrying on a normal conversation is a struggle. You can't seem to express
yourself.
- You're having trouble making simple decisions.
- Your friends and family really irritate you.
- You're not sure if you still love your spouse/significant other.
- Smiling feels stiff and awkward. It's like your smiling muscles are
frozen.
- It seems like there's a glass wall between you and the rest of the world.
- You're forgetful, and it's very difficult to concentrate on anything.
- You're anxious and worried a lot.
- Everything seems hopeless.
- You feel like you can't do anything right.
- You have recurring thoughts of death and/or suicidal impulses. Suicide
seems like a welcome relief.
- You have a feeling of impending doom - you think something bad is going to
happen, although you may not be sure what.
- In your perception of the world around you, it's always cloudy. Even on
sunny days, it seems cloudy and gray.
- You feel as though you're drowning or suffocating.
- You're agitated, jumpy and and anxious much of the time.
- Your senses seem dulled; food tastes bland and uninteresting, music
doesn't seem to affect you, you don't bother smelling flowers anymore.
- Incessantly and uncontrollably into your mind comes the memory of every
failure, every bad or uncomfortable experience, interview or date, like a
torrent of negativity.
Facts About Depression
Trevi Ahlywalia, M.D. , Psychiatrist
Depression is a biological illness that effects
behavior, thoughts and feelings. Although depression can be caused by or worsened by life
problems, medical research has shown that depression occurs as a result of a chemical
imbalance in the brain, just as many other diseases such as diabetes, involve chemical
imbalances. Almost everyone of us has, at one point or another, experienced feelings of
unhappiness "a blue mood" that could be associated with a disruptive life event.
However, a pervasive feeling of sadness that lasts for more than two weeks, and effects
our general functioning is a sign of depression.
Some common symptoms of depression include:
- Changes in sleep habits, like
insomnia, early morning awakening, or sleeping too much.
- Changes in eating habits, such as loss of appetite or weight gain
- Decreased energy, feeling of fatigue.
- Restlessness and irritability.
- Difficulty in concentration, remembering, difficulty in making decisions.
- Feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, guilt or worthlessness.
- Persistent sad, anxious, or empty feelings.
- Loss of interest in one's pleasurable activities, such as involvement with loved ones or
hobbies.
- Thoughts of death or suicide.
The most serious complication of depression can be suicide.
WHAT CAUSES DEPRESSION?
In the brain there are
naturally occurring substances called "neurotransmitters." These are the
chemical messengers, which carry electrical signals from one nerve cell in the brain to
another, across spaces called "synapsis." The neurotransmitters that play a
significant role in maintaining our mood are primarily "serotonin and
norepinephrine." When these neurotransmitters are in low levels, the vegetative
symptoms of depression, as listed above, become clinically evident.
Over a lifetime, one out of five Americans will experience a major depression.
Unfortunately, the diagnosis of depression is often delayed, as well meaning friends and
family tell the depressed individual to "just snap out of the mood." Medical
treatment is necessary for the treatment of major depression and will often relieve the
symptoms within a few weeks.
The treatment of depression is twofold, namely, psychopharmacotherapy and
psychotherapy. The former consists of medicines called "antidepressant
medication." Over the years, a host of antidepressant medications have become
available. The oldest ones are the series of tricyclic antidepressants and the newer ones
consist of the SSRIs, Prozac, Paxil and many others. Unlike common belief, antidepressant
medicines are nonaddictive and safe, if used as prescribed. The antidepressants help to
restore the balance of the neurotransmitters in the brain and thereby, relieve the
vegetative symptoms of depression.
Psychotherapy targets resolution of coexisting life problems and also
helps one to gain a better understanding of one's self. This better understanding of one's
self can then enable one to develop better coping mechanisms.
Daily Depression Symptom
Checklist
This is a Daily checklist that lists signs of depression. You will
out the form each day and share the results with your support system. You can
download a copy
of it in pdf format.
Depression and the Brain
Many things can trigger debilitating depression. Feelings of depression are
caused by a chemical change that affects how the brain functions.A normally functioning brain is a giant messaging system that controls
everything from your heartbeat, to walking, to your emotions. The brain is made
up of billions of nerve cells called neurons. These neurons send and receive
messages from the rest of your body, using brain chemicals called
neurotransmitters.These brain chemicals—in varying amounts—are responsible for our emotional
state. Depression happens when these chemical messages aren’t delivered
correctly between brain cells, disrupting communication.Think of a telephone: if your phone has a weak signal, you may not hear the
person on the other end. Their communication is muted or unclear.
The good news is that there are many forms of treatment that can help you
cope with depression, including medications that can strengthen weak signals by
raising the levels of certain neurotransmitters, or by improving the neurons’
ability to process signals. This ensures that the brain’s vital messages are
delivered—loud and clear.
Health Problems Related to Depression
Candida or yeast infection
Hypoglycemia
Thyroid problems and other endocrine disorders.
Recent
studies suggest that thyroid disorders are the most common physical illnesses that
contribute to depression. Other reported cases suggest that treatment of subclinical
hypothyroidism may be all that's necessary to cure life-long depression.
Environmental allergies and food allergies
Amino acid deficiencies
Electrolyte imbalances
Vitamin or mineral deficiencies
Toxic exposure to heavy metal or chemicals
Cardiopulmonary obstructive disease
Brain tumors
Alzheimer's disease
Strokes and seizures
Hypertension
Viral infections
Diabetes
Insulin resistance or difficulty metabolizing carbohydrates
Any chronic illness
Non-Steroidal Anti-inflammatory Medications
Indomethacin- Anxiety, agitation, hostility, depersonalization
Sulindac- Anger, combativeness, homicidal feelings, obsessive talking
Over-the-Counter Medications
Phenyl-propanolamine
Antihistamines and decongestants
Ephedrine
Pseudephedrine
Aminophylline
Indocin
Corticosteroids
Psychiatric Medications
Antipsychotics- Oversedation, total muteness, malignant syndrome
Lithium
Sed/Hypnotics- Oversedation, disinhibition
Disulfiram- Anxiety
Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.)
More than just the "winter blues"- a form of depression marked by its
seasonality. More than 10 million Americans are afflicted by S.A.D. Photo or light therapy
may help...Many people feel mildly "depressed" during
the winter, but some people have more severe bouts of feeling down all the time, low
energy, problems with sleep, appetite, and reduced concentration to the point where they
have difficulty functioning at work or in the home. We say these people have a clinical
depression, to distinguish it from everyday ups and downs. Seasonal Affective Disorder
(affective is a psychiatric term for mood), or S.A.D, describes people who have these
clinical depressions only during autumn and winter seasons. During the spring and summer,
they feel well and "normal".Common symptoms of S.A.D include:
- Extreme fatigue/lack of energy Increased need for sleep; sleeping much more than usual Carbohydrate craving and increased appetite Weight-gain
- Sense of melancholy
Exciting new research finds that many patients with S.A.D improve with exposure to
bright, artificial light, called light therapy, or phototherapy. As little as 30 minutes
per day of sitting under a lightbox results in significant improvement in 60% to 80% of
S.A.D patients.
Phototherapy, Full-Spectrum Lighting
Full Spectrum Incandescent Bulbs can
help to improve readibility, reduce eye stress, and provide a pleasing, bright
light that can enhance a sense of well-being.
Full Spectrum lighting can also help
those suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.)
Click on
Incandescent Light Bulbs to see a full listing of lights.
Stress Symptoms
Anxiety, apprehension, addiction, arguments, apathy abuse.
Boredom, back-biting, backache, blues, blahs.
Colds, canker sores, claustrophobia, compulsiveness, crying spells, cynicism, claming
up, confiict, confusion.
Drinking, drugs, depression, diarrhea, divorce, distrust, defensiveness.
Edginess,
emptiness.
Fear, forgetfulness, flu, fatigue, frustration, flush.
Guilt, gas, grudges.
Hopelessness, heart attack, high blood pressure, headaches.
Indigestion, insomnia, irritability, irrational thoughts, indecision, intolerance.
Judgmental stance, joylessness, jitters.
Know-it-all attitude, knots in stomach or back.
Loneliness, lowered libido, lethargy, lashing out, lack of concentration.
Muscle twitches, martyrdom, mood swings.
Nagging, negative attitude, nightmares, nervousness, needing to prove something.
Orneryness, out of touch, out of control.
Panic, pounding heart, put downs, poor judgement, pushing too hard.
Quiet, quick to take offense, questioning.
Rudeness, rash, resentment, righteousness indignation.
Sulking, stewing, spiritual void, self-recriminations.
Temper tantrums, too much too do, tension, trouble setting priorities.
Unhappiness, unforgiving spirit, uncertainty, unproductive approach to work,
unrealistic expectations.
Volatile, vague aches and pains, values confusion.
Weight gain/loss, whirling mind, worrying, wasting time.
X-tra pound, x-travagant living.
Yelling, yawns, yah buts.
Zillions of things undone, zero energy.
Nutritional Supplements for Depression
Balance
Boost is a specially formulated nutritional power pack distributed
exclusively by The Center. It is based upon the principles found in Dr. Jantz' book "Moving
Beyond Depression".
Great product especially for fall and winter months.
Learn More about Balance Boost.
Most of the supplements below help in depression becuase they either help to bring balance to hormononal levels or help bring balance in blood sugar levels.
Incandescent Light Bulbs for S.A.D.
S.A.D. is a form of
depression marked by its seasonality. More than 10 million Americans are
afflicted by S.A.D. Photo or Light therapy may
help. Click here to read more about
S.A.D.
