Alcohol Abuse Advice

DEPRESSION: CAUSES AND SYMPTOMS

It’s quite normal for all of us to be depressed  at some point in our life.  The term depression can be used to describe the normal sadness or melancholia which you may feel if you are coping with a stressful event, such as the death of a loved one, or  the termination of a relationship.

However, depression can also be a second name for an illness that is more severe than normal sadness, lasting longer than two weeks, and interferes with other parts of your life, such as work, school or relationships.

Generally, depression or a depressed mood has no apparent cause and sometimes it may be caused by a number of factors such as:

•  Biochemical problem: In normal brain functioning the neurotransmitters which are responsible for mood regulation jump from one nerve cell to the next, with the signal being as strong in the second and subsequent cells as it was in the first. However, if you are suffering from depression then these mood regulating neurotransmitters will fail to function normally, indicating that the signal is either depleted or disrupted before passing on to the next nerve cell, thus resulting in a lowering of your mood.

•  A stressful event or chain of events such as a family break-up, abuse, ongoing bullying at school, rape, a death, a relationship break-up, and family conflict are all responsible for creating depression.  If you face any of these, you might experience sever depression.  

•  Experts suggest that there are certain personality types which are more at risk for depression than others. The people who tend to be anxious, have low self-esteem, are perfectionists or are shy are more prone to depression than others.  

Generally, people experience depression or a depressed mood in different ways, depending on the type of depression and individual differences. The most common symptoms which can be observed in all types of depression include:

•  Feeling sad, moody, hopeless, numb, and anxious, blaming yourself for no reason, and an inability to enjoy activities that you normally enjoyed before.

Becoming overly self critical and finding it difficult to make decisions and think
clearly.  A feeling that things are spiraling out of your control.

•  Poor concentration and memory, thinking about suicide or ending your life, no source of motivation and lack of energy, unnecessary crying, loosing interest in activities you usually enjoy and being in an isolated state are all symptoms of depression.

•  Some doctors also suggest that if you are losing your temper more than usual, experiencing a loss of appetite or have started over-eating, have difficulty sleeping or experiencing headaches and stomach aches for long, then may in fact be suffering from depression.