Depression

Feeling depressed is an extremely common psychological disorder that affects almost everyone at one point in their lives. People encounter mild cases of depression every day, feeling sad, angry or lost, however there is a vast difference between feeling down one day and having a depression disorder. Living with depression interferes with the lives of millions of people, affecting the way someone sleeps, eats, works and the way they feel about themselves and their life.

Depression causes extreme emotional pain; individuals with the disorder cannot just get over it and feel better; these feelings can go on for months or even years. There is treatment available for sufferers of this illness, which has proven to be effective, however because sufferers don't often know the symptoms of depression or feel embarrassed and think their feelings will go away, they don't get treated as soon as they could.

Persistent sad, anxious or empty feelings

• Feeling constantly pessimistic
• Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, helplessness
• Loss of interest in hobbies or activities
• Tiredness and loss of energy
• Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions
• Insomnia, early-morning awakening, or oversleeping
• Change in appetite and/or weight loss or weight gain
• Thoughts of death or suicide
• Persistent physical symptoms, such as headaches, digestive disorders, and chronic pain

  Some people say that depression feels like a black curtain of despair coming down over their lives.

  Many people feel like they have no energy and can't concentrate. Others feel irritable all the time for no apparent reason. The symptoms vary from person to person, but if you feel "down" for more than two weeks, and these feelings are interfering with your daily life, you may be clinically depressed.

  Most people who have gone through one episode of depression will, sooner or later, have another one. You may begin to feel some of the symptoms of depression several weeks before you develop a full-blown episode of depression. Learning to recognize these early triggers or symptoms and working with your doctor will help to keep the depression from worsening.

  Most people with depression never seek help, even though the majority will respond to treatment.

  Treating depression is especially important because it affects you, your family, and your work. Some people with depression try to harm themselves in the mistaken belief that how they are feeling will never change. Depression is a treatable illness

Depression is a highly treatable illness and there is lots of help and advice available once the sufferer decides to seek help. Counselling and psychotherapy are extremely effective ways of treating the disorder if cases are mild to moderate. Drug therapy is also available for more severe situations and there are a variety of antidepressant medications that can be used to treat depressive disorders.

Most sufferers find that a combination of treatment is most effective; the medication gives the sufferer fast relief from the symptoms and the counselling/psychotherapy teaches the individual efficient ways to deal with the problems they have in their life.