Depression: Symptoms and Treatability

According to the World Health Organization, depression, or Major Depressive Disorder is a widespread mental health disorder that impacts over 280 million people globally. Depression has been shown to impact how people think, feel, and behave, oftentimes interfering with how they carry out everyday tasks.

What Is It Like To Be Depressed?

An individual, Kenneth J.Grimes, a contributor to Healthyplace.com described his life with depression as a rollercoaster filled with emotions like anger, self-hatred, despair, and loneliness. However, he also pointed out that actively identifying triggers allowed him to manage his emotions more effectively.

What Are The Key Symptoms Of Depression?

Depression has a lot of symptoms, mainly affecting us mentally, physically, emotionally, as well as physically. Below are the most obvious markers in which you can tell if you are indeed going through depression and seek medical care;

1. Persistent sadness or low mood

Depression often feels like a heavy cloud that lingers over your life. Your mood takes a hit and an awful emotion of sadness takes over, these episodes can continue for longer parts of your day, extending to weeks.

2. Loss of interest in activities

Depression is often a motivation killer. During depressive episodes, you experience a loss of motivation in activities that are supposed to be fun and truly contribute to your well-being. This affects different activities such as in your workplace, hobbies or even spending time with family and friends. It all seems like a waste of time to you and you really do not feel the urge to take part.

3. Low self-worth and Guilt

Depression often distorts how people view themselves. It makes you view yourself as inadequate or a failure. Such thoughts and feelings affect and are deeply connected to low self-esteem and worth. During episodes and whenever one is struggling with depression, people engage in harsh self-criticism. Such dialogues are mostly filled with self-blame, guilt, and shame. Speaking of guilt, you might blame yourself for things you had little to no control over.

4. Fatigue

Depression saps energy, making even the simplest of tasks seem insurmountable.  People with depression often experience chronic fatigue that is not only physical but also mental and emotional. This makes fatigue one of the most exhausting markers of the disorder.

5. Suicidal Thoughts

This is one of the most concerning and dreaded markers of depression. It is estimated that nearly 8 in every 100 individuals who experience depression will or have experienced suicidal thoughts at some point in their lives. Such thoughts are due to the severity of depressive symptoms such as intense feelings of hopelessness and persistent sadness.

Please seek help if you are experiencing suicidal thoughts. Your life matters.

6. Poor Concentration

This is a common marker of depression due to several reasons, including;

1. 1. Effect on cognitive functioning: Cognitive functions such as decision-making and attention spans are usually affected.

1. 2. Anxiety: For a lot of individuals experiencing depression, poor concentration is made worse by anxiety. Episodes are often characterized by racing thoughts and excessive worry that increasingly affect concentration.

7. Disrupted sleep

Depression has been shown to have a major effect on your sleep patterns and can manifest in various ways including;

1. 1. Insomnia: More than 75% of people with depression experience insomnia, this is a sleep disorder in which individuals have difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or falling back to sleep.

   2. Hypersomnia: This is a sleep disorder in which individuals have excessive sleep patterns which often consist of more than 9 to 10 hours of sleep in which they wake up fatigued.

Is Depression Treatable?

Depression is treatable in various ways, including psychological treatments and medications. The condition’s medication and treatment have come a long way, and as Khalid Saad Al-Harbi points out in his article, the majority of individuals with depression—that is 70% to 90%—experience significant improvements or complete remission of symptoms with proper treatment.