Are you depressed?

Mental Health Awareness Month

May 2017

Our topic for this Blog Session is "Depression".  We've talked about it this month during Mental Health Awareness Month, and we'll be discussing it today due to the high number of people who are going through states of depression.

Grab your Journal and your pen, because we have a lot of ground to cover that will be helpful for you, your friends, your family, co-workers, and those in your discussion groups.

The Question is:  Can you or someone you know be depressed without knowing it?

For many people, the answer is "Yes".  Even though most of us know on the surface what depression looks like, it is possible that we miss it.

Many people slip into a state of depression without even realizing it.  With today's high level of technology -- computers, smartphones, tablets, meeting after meeting, family demands, money issues, job stress, health matters, negative news media, and any number of other incidentals -- like accidents, confrontations, and unexpected events, it is no wonder anyone has time for "self care".

Telltale symptoms of depression include:

1)  low self esteem

2)  over critical view of "self"

3)  self-loathing thoughts

4)  negative thinking

5)  bad mood

6)  "touchy feelings"

7)  crying spells

8)  lack of drive

9)  patches of anger

Even the people we're closest to might not realize we're depressed, especially if we're good at covering over our feelings.  Friends, family, associates, co-workers, and those we come in contact with may sense that we're not at our best, but might attribute it to other factors, or they may think it is temporary and it will pass.  They could be wrong.

Given the greater public awareness of depression, how is it possible to not know when it's present?  There are several factors that can play a role:

1.  Depression can look really different from person to person. 

Two people who are both depressed might have zero symptoms in common.  Carl, for example, might feel really low, and have insomnia, be unable to eat more than a few bites at a time, struggle with concentration, and be so miserable that he's considering ending his own life.  Tamera, on the other hand, doesn't feel noticeably down, but has no interest in anything, even activities she used to enjoy.  She's sleeping 12 hours a day, but is still fatigued and physically slowed, and feels completely worthless.  As different as these two examples are, they are both consistent with major depressive disorder.  The severity of depression can vary a lot as well -- from being completely unable to function to still being able to take care of one's responsibilities and even find occasional enjoyment.  We are less likely to see milder forms of depression for what they are.

2. Depression tends to develop gradually.

The development of each symptom of depression can be like hair growing, with no noticeable change day to day or even week to week.  Since we are never not with ourselves, we may not have a good sense of small changes over time as our mood, energy, and view of ourselves takes a dip.  And then one day, we might finally look at ourselves and barely recognize the person we see, as the cumulative changes become obvious.

3.  In a related way, the various symptoms of depression often develop at different times. 

Depression often has an insidious onset — we develop a symptom here, a symptom there.  We might not have as much energy as before, and a few weeks later we notice that we're crankier than usual.  We might not suspect that both experiences are connected to the same underlying condition. If several depression symptoms landed in your life all at once, it would be much more obvious that they were part of a syndrome.

4. There may be an obvious reason for feeling down.

When we're facing major challenges like health problems, a painful divorce, or job loss, we expect to feel poorly.  It would be strange, in fact, if our moods weren't affected to some extent.  Thus we might not call our reaction "depression," because it seems so understandable.  However, these kinds of losses are among the most consistent predictors of depression, as we lose reliable sources of reward, engagement, and support.

5.  There may be no obvious “reason” to be depressed.

On the other hand, our moods can tank without any cause that we can identify.  It could be that we have a genetic predisposition to depression, or that we're sensitive to seasonal shifts.  There could also be identifiable changes in our lives that could account for our low mood, but we don't make the connection.  For example, we may have gotten a better job, which we expect would improve our mood; however, we also left behind a solid group of friends at our old job, and now have a stressful commute in the car whereas before we could take the train.  Without an obvious trigger for our depression, we’re less likely to see it when it comes.

6.  Some symptoms might not seem like depression. 

We often assume that a person who is depressed is really sad, and yet depression doesn't have to include sadness.  Many individuals with depression feel more numb than sad, or may have lost interest in things they used to enjoy without having an obvious shift in their emotional state.  It can also be easy to attribute depression symptoms to other factors, since depression is one of several possible explanations.  For example, we might blame stress for our increased appetite and sleep problems, and think our trouble concentrating is driven by poor sleep.

7. We don’t want to see ourselves as "depressed." 

Despite progress over the past few decades, there is still a lot of stigma around depression.  We may have internalized that stigma, seeing depression as a "weakness" or "personal failure."  As a result, we might not want to recognize our own depression.  Maybe we prided ourselves on our strength and resilience, and depression just doesn’t square with our identity.  We may therefore look for any alternative explanation for the way we're feeling.

Recognizing Depression

How Recognizing Depression Helps

Coming to see our depression for what it is can be tremendously helpful, even life-changing, in at least two ways. 

First, depression can affect all areas of our life, making us feel like everything is falling apart: We're not sleeping well, we're irritable, our motivation is gone, nothing is fun anymore, and so forth.  Putting these many struggles under a single umbrella makes them much more manageable.  Rather than having 15 problems, we have one, and obviously it is much easier to tackle a single problem than 15.

Second, once we've named it, we know how to treat it. Several "talk therapies" have strong research evidence for alleviating depression.  For example, a few weeks of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) generally has a major effect on depression symptoms.  There are also medications that are used to treat depression, some of which can be as effective as the best psychotherapies.

For many people, depression can be managed without professional assistance, especially if the depression falls in the mild to moderate range, and if there's a low risk for self harm.  Many people are able to manage their own depression through a combination of self-help, strong support from the people closest to them, and by getting involved in a triathlon. [A triathlon is an athletic contest consisting of three different events, typically swimming, cycling, and long-distance running.]

If you or a loved one has been struggling and some of your symptoms could reflect depression, it may be a good idea to schedule an appointment with your primary care doctor or a mental health professional.  Psychology Today offers a database where where you can search for a therapist who would be a good match for you. 

However we combat depression, we don’t have to suffer — help is available.  Like anything else in life, knowing what we’re dealing with is half the battle.

THE PERFECT TOOL:  A Journal

Journal your feelings

I can't stress it enough -- Journal your thoughts, feelings, activities, emotions, moods, and the people in your life.

Pay particular attention to what is going on in your life, and what exactly causes your moods to change, emotions to shift, activities to fluctuate, thoughts to change from positive to negative, feelings to go from high to low, and the people in your life to revolve in or out.

Why do certain things happen in your life?

Have you created certain behavior patterns?

Is what you are doing beneficial, progressive and fruitful?

Or is what you are doing negative, destructive and counter-productive?

Where are the places you are going?

Who are the people in your life?

What are the hobbies that you are involved in?

What type of work are you doing? -- Do you like it?

Life can be challenging, sometimes hard, sometimes sad.

But, life can also be rewarding, fun, joyful, interesting, and worth living and worth fighting for -- you choose.

Look for the signs

Friends ~ See you back here with your Journal!

Peace, Love & Light,

 René

©Copyright - René Allen - MAY 2017 - All Rights Reserved