The word depressed is a common everyday word. Most of us have moments or short periods of sadness when we feel lonely or depressed. These sensations are usually normal ones that sometimes occur in life. Most people recover quite quickly. With true depression, you have a low mood and other symptoms each day for at least two weeks. Symptoms can also become severe enough to interfere with normal day-to-day activities. If you have had at least five of the depression symptoms listed below – especially if you feel depressed and have lost interest in things that you used to enjoy – you may be suffering from depression.
1. Depressed Mood
Persistent sadness or low mood. This is a core symptom of depressive illness, whereby people feel miserable or sad or may cry frequently, often with no real reason that they can identify.
2. Sleep Disturbances
All forms of sleep disturbance are common in depression. This may be difficulty in getting off to sleep, or waking early and being unable to get back to sleep. Sometimes it is sleeping too much.
3. Fatigue
Deep fatigue or a loss of energy is a symptom of depression. The fatigue of depression usually does not make people yawn or feel they are about to nod off to sleep, even if you sleep, you may wake up feeling as if you have not slept at all.
4. Change in appetite or weight
When depressed, many people lose interest in food, and find that they no longer enjoy the foods they used to like, typically, the patient eats less and loses weight. However, some people may eat more and gain weight.
5. Thoughts Of Death
This is a serious symptom, recurrent thoughts of death. This is not usually a fear of death, more a preoccupation with death and dying. For some people despairing thoughts such as “life’s not worth living” or “I don’t care if I don’t wake up” are common. Sometimes these thoughts progress into thoughts and even plans for suicide. Please believe me that this is in fact totally wrong, and you are being controlled by an illness, which is telling you lies about reality. If you have suicidal ideas, it is very important you ask a friend or family member to stay with you until you can get professional help to stop the illness that makes you think this way.
6. Multiple Physical Symptoms
Aches and pains in various parts of the body, especially affecting the stomach and bowels, are very common in depression. Physical pain and depression are closely related. Simply put, pain can be depressing, and depression causes and intensifies pain. Dizziness is also a frequent symptom, and many people feel aches and pains in their muscles and joints.
7. Reduced Ability To Cope
Depression makes everything ten times, or a hundred times, the effort it used to be. Poor concentration or indecisiveness. For example, you may find it difficult to read, work, etc. Even simple tasks can seem difficult. The slowed up thinking, the memory problems, and the difficulty concentrating described in the above paragraph all make it more and more difficult to carry out your normal tasks.
8. Hallucinations And/Or Delusions
Hallucination means hearing, seeing, feeling, smelling, or tasting something that is not real. In very severe depression, people may hear voices when there is nobody around. Delusions is the jargon name for totally convincing but totally false ideas that get locked into your mind when you are very ill. They are false chemical messages implanted into your brain by the illness. Doctors can wipe out these symptoms with modern powerful medications.
Depression can have a major negative impact on a sufferer’s life – experts say the effect is comparable to that of diabetes, and some other chronic conditions. You may ‘bottle up’ your symptoms from friends and relatives. However, if you are open about your feelings with close family and friends, it may help them to understand and help. Don’t despair – most people with depression recover. It is important to remember this. doctor can wipe out with modern powerful medications. Read on and learn about natural remedies for depression.
