Eight Warning Signs of Depression - Shouldn't Ignore
A car hits a puddle and splashes filthy water all over you. It is a lousy day, but it is just 1 day. For one in ten Americans with Depression, however, the blues do not go off with a flip of the calendar. Its symptoms generally persist for a couple of weeks or longer and do not subside without treatment. Unfortunately, most people don't understand that depression's symptoms are not as simple as "feeling depressed." What is more, each individual experiences depression differently, meaning some might experience more symptoms than others. Depression goes unrecognized far too frequently, and those influenced by it are forced to suffer in silence. Keep reading to learn how to identify the most common signs of melancholy -- whether in yourself, friends or family members -- and how to find help.
i. ANGER AND IRRITABILITY
Frequently, when depressed, people report feeling agitated, restless or even violent, explains psychologist Robert London, M.D. Anger can also exacerbate melancholy. In accordance with a single Advances in Psychiatric Treatment editorial, if anger is left untreated, it can result in passive-aggressive behaviour. This behavior can be self-destructive and bring about feelings of melancholy. London recommends that anybody experiencing aggression or hostility, or even a remarkably short temper, discuss conflicts with other people to work toward a potential resolution. Talking with a counselor or therapist can also prove helpful in sorting through emotions of anger or bitterness and coming up with constructive methods of dealing with them.
ii. SELF-CRITICISM
All of us have an inner critic," says Jaime W. Vinick, M.C., LPC, NCC, chief clinical officer at Sierra Tucson psychiatric facility. "For people who are unhappy, this critical inner voice can have a strong and destructive influence in their state of mind." Excessive self-criticism can be a powerful indication of depression. In a 2009 Comprehensive Psychiatry study of 107 adults, people who were self-critical were more inclined to be depressed four years later. Pay attention to how often you or anybody else uses the word "should," says Moe Gelbart, Ph.D., a psychologist at Torrance Memorial Medical Center in California. Frequently referencing your behaviour by saying you "should" have done something is a frequent sign of self-judgment. Discover how to fight that self-criticism with positive self-talk.
iii. HOPELESSNESS
Among the worst symptoms of depression is a feeling of hopelessness," Vinick says. Feelings of despair can discourage people from seeking treatment for their depression. Those afflicted by extreme despair might not believe they will or can ever feel much better, which explains why some effort suicide. For many people with depression, feelings of despair are cultivated over time by means of a history of failures, For and says. These failures could be actual or imagined, and self-criticism may play a massive role in the latter.
iv. LOSS OF INTEREST
Losing interest in three-hour meetings is 1 thing, but with melancholy, folks can eliminate interest in things they typically like, such as movies, sports and time spent with friends. This phenomenon is called anhedonia, according to Gelbart. Regrettably, a reduction of interest can exacerbate feelings of isolation, resulting in additional depression, Gelbart says. This loss of interest might be because of changes in the brain's levels of reward-regulating hormones and neurotransmitters, based on London. It is a self-destructive cycle which can be difficult for people afflicted by depression to break.
v. SIGNIFICANT WEIGHT CHANGES
Depression may perform a number on a scale. When depressed, many men and women lose interest in eating since they no longer love meals. On the other hand, they could emotionally eat at a conscious or unconscious effort to improve their mood. In fact, according to a 2003 study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, eating foods full of carbohydrates can temporarily encourage the synthesis of their feel-good chemical dopamine in the brain. Depression-induced inactivity may also promote weight gain. If someone experiences a change in body weight of over five percent in per month, medical attention is necessary, according to London.
vi. CHANGES IN SLEEP HABITS
Based on one 2008 review published in the Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, about three-quarters of those people with depression suffer from insomnia. "Constant fears, stress and ruminating can lead to difficulties with falling or staying asleep," clarifies Gelbart. And, like most indicators of depression, poor sleep just makes depression worse. Meanwhile, according to the same study, about 40 percent of depressed young adults (most commonly young girls) sleep too when miserable. Normally, depressed individuals who sleep away their days are utilizing sleep as a method of escaping out of their difficulties, according to Gelbart.
vii. FATIGUE
"Depressed peoples' bodies act like they are under constant stress, which can lead to inflammation, which in turn can lead to feelings of fatigue," Forand says. Even if they don't realize they are depressed, many people experiencing depression will complain of feeling tired, lethargic and ill drained, based on London. The very same individuals often experience sleep disturbances, which may exacerbate feelings of exhaustion and grogginess. Sometimes, this exhaustion can manifest itself through slurred speech, poor response times and slowed-down walking, gestures and other movements.
viii. UNEXPLAINED ACHES AND PAINS
Frequently, when depressed individuals do seek medical care, their complaint isn't depression at all. It has aches and pains, like stomach troubles and back and joint pain, according to Vinick. She explains that the neurotransmitters serotonin and norepinephrine influence not just disposition, but also biological and neurological processes that could lead to pain. What's more, depression can affect how pain is perceived in the mind. "Pain signals from the body which are normally blunted or redirected can instead be amplified," Forand says. "People who are depressed also generally get a lot of negative self-focused attention, so they might be more inclined to notice pain sensations and concentrate on them, that can make the perception of pain worse," he says.
Social-media websites such as Pinterest, Tumblr, Instagram and YouTube have come under fire for hosting material boosting eating disorders. Commonly called "thinspiration," "thinspo," "pro-ana" and "pro-mia," hunts on such conditions yield pictures of emaciated bodies and tips from customers about how to create or maintain a eating disorder.
A 2010 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health research discovered when pro-eating-disorder terms like "pro-anorexia" and "lean and support" were searched, 83 percent of the search-engine results were websites encouraging eating-disorder behavior through text and images. Because this study was conducted in 2010, we have to assume that pro-eating-disorder content has only become more abundant and pervasive as social networking continues to evolve both in the number of sites and their enhanced functionality for supporting sharing and connection data.As a psychologist specializing in treating eating disorders, I am bothered -- although maybe not surprised -- by the emerging connection between social media and these intricate illnesses. Several Important characteristics of social media make it an ideal spot to promote the pro-eating-disorder mentality, including:
1. Increased vulnerability to information related to dieting and weight loss. Dieting mindset has become normative in our civilization, in part because people flock to societal media to publicize their diet, weight loss plans and results. Anyone can post anything on social networking, giving unhealthy ideologies such as the pro-eating-disorder motion a faux validity.[Read: Filling from the Facts About Thigh Gaps]
2. A moderate for social contrast. The literature tells us that social comparison affects deficits in self-esteem. Social media -- in both title and functionality -- is the perfect medium for social comparison, with many individuals using these programs to share information regarding their unhealthy diets and body ideals. In fact, this content results in feelings of inferiority, inadequacy and body dissatisfaction from otherwise ordinary women and may compel an urgent requirement to take action through restriction, purging or over-exercising to attain increased thinness among those fighting with negative body image or an eating disorder.
3. Social media seeks to promote connection with other people, but for most at risk for or suffering from eating disorders, it encourages isolation and withdrawal from real-world relationships.Eating disorders are isolating ailments.
For those already coping with social difficulties and issues round self-esteem and confidence, spending an excessive amount of time online in their own social networks is a way of avoidance, passivity and diminishing direct communication with individuals. Social networking can provide a sense of belonging and connection around a subject that feels secure, even if it's unhealthy.
4. Anonymity. The high-achieving, perfectionistic, people-pleasing individuals who tend to suffer from these types of complex illnesses often go to great lengths to conceal their extreme body dissatisfaction and eating-disorder behaviours.
Social media allows for a sense of connection while keeping relative anonymity through the use of pseudonyms and fictitious profile information. This manner, social websites is attractive for pro-eating-disorder articles because it allows people to discuss their eating disorders while at the same time keeping them a secret.
While certain aspects of social media can contribute to the growth and maintenance of an eating disorder, it may also be a powerful tool to encourage and sustain recovery when used responsibly. Social media enables peer assistance and boosts connection with others. For people struggling with social abilities, it can be a terrific place to start creating connections and relationships.
