Depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity that can affect a person’s thoughts, behaviour, feelings and physical well-being. It may include feelings of sadness, anxiety, emptiness, hopelessness, worthlessness, guilt, irritability, or restlessness.
Depressed people may lose interest in activities that once were pleasurable, or suffer cognitive impairments (difficulty concentrating, remembering details, or making decisions). They may contemplate or attempt suicide. Their weight may change dramatically. Insomnia, excessive sleeping, fatigue, loss of energy, or aches, pains or digestive problems that are resistant to treatment may be present. Depression can cause pervasive problems in an individual’s life through its (often unconscious) changes to behaviour (e.g. a pygmalion effect of expecting poor social performance, and ultimately pushing people away).
I suffer from depression…. It took along time to accept it, even longer to admit it. I believed that my depression was my fault, and I deserved it. It started just after I had my oophorectomy and sucked me into a deep dark hole that I thought would be impossible to get out of, I felt alone and scared.
When I went to my doctor to talk with him about it, he actually said that people were so afraid of the word depression because it made some people feel like they had some sort of disease, and that depression is actually quite common….
How common is depression? It’s very common. One in six New Zealanders will experience a major depressive disorder at some time in their life. It’s more common among females (one in fi ve females, compared to one in eight males). One in seven young New Zealanders experience a major depressive disorder before the age of 24. Depression increases the risk of suicide by 20 times.
what can cause it?
There’s no simple answer to this – usually it’s a combination of things that happen to a person. Research indicates that ongoing diffi culties, such as long term unemployment, alcohol problems, chronic illness, or living in an abusive or uncaring relationship, are more likely to cause depression than recent stressful situations. Sometimes there’s no obvious reason. But certain factors can put you at higher risk. These include: Family • A family or personal history of depression.• Conflict or violence within your family.• Bad things that happened when you were a child• Death or loss of someone close.• Breaking up with a partner.• Falling out with someone you care about.• Traumatic or life threatening events.• Too much pressure and stress at work, school or university.• Feeling you’re being bullied or undermined.• Losing your job or being unemployed for a long time.• Having a head injury or other trauma, epilepsy, or a long term or serious illness. • Some women experience depression during or after childbirth.
If you want to talk to a trained counsellor about how you’re feeling, or you’ve got any questions, you can: • Call the Depression Helpline on 0800 111 757 (New Zealand only) or visit http://www.depression.org.nz
Please know that you are not alone
Thanks for sharing this Karin! I’m sending you a HUGE virtual hug.
It’s so very important for people to watch for signs of depression in our friends and family. Depression is very serious no matter how small or how severe someones depression is. A
i accidentally sent this before finishing.
A smile to a stranger or a hug to a friend. No gesture is to small. You can make a big difference in someones day.
I found this through the A-Z challenge, and I wanted to commend you on a useful discussion of a topic that, by its nature, tends not to be discussed usefully.
I’ve often thought that people with depression tend to be exactly the people one might not expect to have depression – people who are interesting, smart, capable, and determined, but who find themselves channelling those attributes into a distorted perception of the world in which they are forever coming off worst.
Fortunately, there is support out there, and people with depression can adapt to it and beyond it. Thanks for posting.
thank u so much. I feel so alone in my journey. Its very difficult to survive each day.