In current lifestyle depression is a common mental disorder worldwide and a very serious condition as it leads to disability and suicidal attempts. Worldwide data suggests about 3 to 5 percent of population suffering from it scaling to low, medium, severe stages. Depression in not usual mood swings around daily life challenges but a constant persistent behavioural change and needs immediate caring by experts, psychologists or psychotherapists. Depression causes poor functioning at work, school and in family. A sizeable part of young age deaths in the age gap of 15 to 29 year olds is suicide and this is one among the leading cause of death.
Even though there are effective treatments and therapies for mental disorders available but is inaccessible in developing or underdeveloped countries. It is because of lack of resources, lack of trained healthcare providers. Also, one more problem is attached with mental health care that’s social stigma. It is a greatest barrier in getting right help at right time.
Most of the time people having mental depression are not correctly diagnosed and sometimes people not having depression are misdiagnosed and get prescribed antidepressants.
Depression is a serious medical condition and needs expert’s intervention in its stage is necessary for the right treatment. If left untreated or considered simply as a grief or sadness it can affect your physical health also severely. For example, untreated depression can worsen your
What is Depression
Clinical depression different from sadness affects a person’s thought, feelings and behaviours negatively and often decreases the person’s ability to feel happiness. Depression is a persistent outcome.
Symptoms of Depression
If for continuous some days say 15, a person feels loss of interest in pleasure, change in appetite leading to weight gain and weight loss, change in sleeping pattern, disinterested in different activities, irritable, fatigued, feeling worthless, helpless and hopeless, feeling unexplained guilt,
Suicidal thoughts, it is said to be case of depression.
Diagnosis of depression and its treatment
Primary symptoms are recognised by a medical practitioner and then it’s treated by use of anti-depressant medication and psychotherapy.
But for some severe treatment resistant cases Deep Brain Stimulation has been found as an option.
Why Depression more prevalent in women
hormonal imbalance has been found being the reason of brain chemistry leading to change in mental health and physical too. Effect is more pronounced in women and hence more prevalent in women. The biological and hormonal changes that occur during puberty cause mental depression and irritability among women. It is expected twice as common in females rather than males.
What is Postpartum Depression (PPD)
Due to hormonal and physical changes during and after child-birth and a new responsibility, women may pass through a short period of mood changes or irritability called baby blues for almost 10 days. But if continues for more than that and for months, then it’s called POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION (PPD) and acute PPD is a serious condition and a new mother requires treatment and emotional support.
Stage of Menopause causing depression
Menopause is a state when production of hormones (estrogen and progesterone) in women’s body stops permanently to very low levels. Eggs are not getting produces in women’s ovaries anymore. The change in hormonal level affects brain chemistry and leads to a phase of depression in women.
Depression in later stage of life
As your age advances, blood vessels become hardened and less flexible and the you may suffer from restricted blood flow to your organs including brain. This condition is called ischemia. This condition causes depression in older people.
Patterns of Depression in Man, Woman and children
Depression is experienced differently for different segment of people. Symptoms are noticed different in case of males, females, teen and children.
Symptoms in Males:
- Mood change as aggressiveness and anger and feeling anxiety, restlessness
- Feeling lonely, empty or sad
- Loss of interest in pleasurable activities, feeling tired too often, suicidal thoughts, excessive drinking, drugs use. Sometimes engaging in high-risk activities also.
- Reduced sexual interest
- Reduced cognitive abilities such as concentration, difficulty in completing tasks, delayed responses during conversations
- Problems in sleep patterns such as insomnia, restlessness, excessive sleepiness, no or minimum sleep in night
- Feeling fatigued, digestive problems, pains and headaches
Symptoms in females
- Irritable mood, feeling sad emptiness, anxious, hopelessness
- Change in behavioural pattern such as withdrawal from social engagements, loss of interest in various activities, suicidal thoughts
- Reduction in cognitive abilities, such as thinking or talking more slowly
- Disturbed sleep patterns, such as little sleep in the night, waking early, or excessive sleeping
- physical well-being, such as decreased energy, feeling fatigued, appetite pattern turning different, weight loss or gain, feeling aches, pain, headaches, or increased cramps more often
Symptoms in children
- Children may feel mood swings, more irritable, anger or crying more/ They might go through feeling of incompetence, despair, crying or intense sadness.
- They might feel difference in their behavioural pattern such as avoiding school, friends and siblings, suicidal thoughts or self-harming tendencies.
- Their cognitive abilities can be a concern such as difficulty in concentration, decline in school performance.
- Changes in sleep patterns such as either excessive sleeping or no or difficult sleep.
- They might have loss of energy, digestive problems, improper appetite, improper weight loss or gain.
Contributing factors and prevention
Due to some adverse situation in life like trauma, unemployment, bereavement, even a healthy-looking person can fall for depression. There are many complex social, psychological and biological factors contributing to the situation and causing depression and in turn depression can cause stress and system dysfunction.
Depression and physical health is deeply related. Depression and cardiovascular diseases contribute and cause each other. A vicious circle.
Specially designed prevention programmes, community-based programmes, behavioural therapy involving related persons can help. In case of children school-based community programmes involving their parents is good to work on it and reduce it. Exercises are good to fight with the symptom.
Diagnosis and treatment
For treatment there are therapies are available like psychological treatments for behavioural activation, cognitive behavioural therapy and interpersonal psychotherapy and antidepressant medication if needed. Anti-depressant medication is not preferred initially. Not good for children.
Types of Depression
Major depression
It is a continuous feeling of sadness, loss of interest in any activity which was earlier enjoyable. It can be treated with help of medication and psychotherapy.
Persistent depressive disorder
It is called dysthymia, is a long-time persistent effect for minimum 2 year. This has symptom of major and milder both type of depression.
Bipolar disorder
It is a type of depression in which people experience state of mania that is elevated mood of feeling for both happiness and aggressiveness for weeks. Person having bipolar disorder sometimes may feel psychotic depression. Psychosis indicates loss of contact from reality, state of delusions and hallucinations.
Postpartum depression (PPD)
Women experience a brief period of sadness and some heightened emotions called baby blues. But if the symptoms persist and at the higher intensity, this becomes a case of PPD or postnatal depression and immediate attention towards treatment is needed. If left unattended, this can continue for months and years.
Major depressive disorder with seasonal pattern
Mostly in winters and falls or where there is less daylight, this type of depression is noticed which lifts during rest of the year or responds to the light therapy. It lifts during the rest of the year and in response to light therapy. Mostly seen in the countries with long and severe winters.