Everything You Need to Know About Depression (Major Depressive Disorder)

Depression is classified as a mood disorder. It may be described as feelings of sadness, loss, or anger that interfere with a person’s everyday activities.

It’s also fairly common. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and PreventionTrusted Source estimates that 18.5 percent of American adults had symptoms of depression in any given 2-week period in 2019.

Though depression and grief share some features, depression is different from grief felt after losing a loved one or sadness felt after a traumatic life event. Depression usually involves self-loathing or a loss of self-esteem, while grief typically does not.

In grief, positive emotions and happy memories of the deceased typically accompany feelings of emotional pain. In major depressive disorder, the feelings of sadness are constant.

People experience depression in different ways. It may interfere with your daily work, resulting in lost time and lower productivity. It can also influence relationships and some chronic health conditions.

Conditions that can get worse due to depression include:

• arthritis
• asthma
• cardiovascular disease
• cancer
• diabetes
• obesity
   

It’s important to realize that feeling down at times is a normal part of life. Sad and upsetting events happen to everyone. But if you’re feeling down or hopeless on a regular basis, you could be dealing with depression.

Depression is considered a serious medical condition that can get worse without proper treatment.

Depression symptoms
Depression can be more than a constant state of sadness or feeling “blue.”

Major depression can cause a variety of symptoms. Some affect your mood and others affect your body. Symptoms may also be ongoing or come and go.

General signs and symptoms
 

Not everyone with depression will experience the same symptoms. Symptoms can vary in severity, how often they happen, and how long they last.

If you experience some of the following signs and symptomsTrusted Source of depression nearly every day for at least 2 weeks, you may be living with depression:

• feeling sad, anxious, or “empty”
• feeling hopeless, worthless, and pessimistic
• crying a lot
• feeling bothered, annoyed, or angry
• loss of interest in hobbies and interests you once enjoyed
• decreased energy or fatigue
• difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions
• moving or talking more slowly
• difficulty sleeping, early morning awakening, or oversleeping
• appetite or weight changes
• chronic physical pain with no clear cause that does not get better with treatment (headaches, aches or pains, digestive problems, cramps)
• thoughts of death, suicide, self-harm, or suicide attempts

Depression causes
There are several possible causes of depression. They can range from biological to circumstantial.

Common causes include:

• Brain chemistry. There may be a chemical imbalance in parts of the brain that manage mood, thoughts, sleep, appetite, and behavior in people who have depression.
   
• Hormone levels. Changes in female hormones estrogen and progesterone during different periods of time like during the menstrual cycle, postpartum period, perimenopause, or menopause may all raise a person’s risk for depression.
   
• Family history. You’re at a higher risk for developing depression if you have a family history of depression or another mood disorder.
   
• Early childhood trauma. Some events affect the way your body reacts to fear and stressful situations.​

• Brain structure. There’s a greater risk for depression if the frontal lobe of your brain is less active. However, scientists don’t know if this happens before or after the onset of depressive symptoms.
   
• Medical conditions. Certain conditions mayTrusted Source put you at higher risk, such as chronic illness, insomnia, chronic pain, Parkinson’s disease, stroke, heart attack, and cancer.

• Substance use. A history of substance or alcohol misuse can affect your risk.
   
• Pain. People who feel emotional or chronic physical pain for long periods of time are significantly more likelyTrusted Source to develop depression.

Treatment for depression
You may successfully manage symptoms with one form of treatment, or you may find that a combination of treatments works best.

It’s common to combine medical treatments and lifestyle therapies
 

1.Medications
 

2.Psychotherapy
Speaking with a therapist can help you learn skills to cope with negative feelings. You may also benefit from family or group therapy sessions.

Psychotherapy, also known as “talk therapy,” is when a person speaks to a trained therapist to identify and learn to cope with the factors that contribute to their mental health condition, such as depression.

Psychotherapy has been shownTrusted Source to be an effective treatment in improving symptoms in people with depression and other psychiatric disorders.

Psychotherapy is often used alongside pharmaceutical treatment. There are many different types of psychotherapy, and some people respond better to one type than another.

3.Light therapy
Exposure to doses of white light can help regulate your mood and improve symptoms of depression. Light therapy is commonly used in seasonal affective disorder, which is now called major depressive disorder with seasonal pattern.

Talk with a health professional before using light therapy. Those with bipolar disorder can be at risk for mania using light therapy.

4.Alternative therapies.

Ask your doctor about alternative therapies for depression. Many people choose to use alternative therapies alongside traditional psychotherapy and medication.

Some examples include: Meditation. Stress, anxiety, and anger are triggers of depression, but meditation can help change the way your brain responds to these emotions. StudiesTrusted Source show that meditation practices can help improve symptoms of depression and lower your chances of a depression relapse.

Acupuncture. Acupuncture is a form of traditional Chinese medicine that may help ease some symptoms of depression.

During acupuncture, a practitioner uses needles to stimulate certain areas in the body in order to treat a range of conditions. ResearchTrusted Source suggests that acupuncture may help clinical treatments work better and may be as effective as counseling.