Do you or you know someone who is currently sad and hopeless? There is the possibility of depression. Depression is a common mental illness that affects any individual including children, teenagers as well as adults. Moreover, this mental illness can severely affect the quality of life. However, there is a diversity in symptoms as well as the types of depression. So if you want to know the detailed facts about depression as well as the different types of depression, then this article is best for you. After reading this article, you will also get familiar with the coping strategies for depression. So let’s get started.
What is Depression?
Depression is a severe form of anxiety also recognized as a persistent form of sadness. Affected individuals are unable to properly, think and behave due to their continuous anxious thoughts. Moreover, depression is not restricted to any gender as both males and females can suffer from depression. However, females are more prone to depression symptoms as compared to males. Likewise, adolescents as well as teenagers are more likely to have depression as compared to older people.
Individuals grappling with depression are unable to maintain the balance between their personal and professional lives and face multiple complexities in each phase of life. If a child is depressed then he can not pay attention in the classroom and face difficulty in learning and remembering important things. In addition, they do not make bonds with their loved ones and prefer to stay alone even at home or in school. So overall, their quality of life is completely affected.
How common is Depression?
Depression is a common mental health issue. Various recent studies have reported that approximately 7% to 8% of adults in the USA are affected by depression every year. Similarly, researchers said that about 1 in every 6 people can suffer from depression at any point in their life.
What are the common symptoms of Depression?
Each individual is unique and exhibits different responses to the symptoms of depression. Some major and common symptoms of depression are as follows:
- Continuous sadness
- Sense of fear
- Sense of shyness or embarrassment
- Preference of staying alone
- Uncontrolled mood swings
- Restless behavior
- Irritability
- Fidgeting behavior
- Numbness
- Sweating or shaking of hands
- Lack of focus or concentration
- Reduced motivation
- Low self-confidence or self-esteem
- Frustration
- Crying without any apparent reason
- Anger outbursts
- Emptiness
- Intrusive thoughts or self-harming thoughts
- Difficulty in sleeping
- Gastric issues
- Headache or body ache
- Reduced sex drive
- Speech issues
- Weight fluctuation
- Loss of appetite
- Difficulty in making a decision
Whenever you find that you or your loved one is exhibiting any of the above-mentioned symptoms of depression, you need to prepare your mind to seek professional help to recover from the symptoms of depression.
What are the different types of Depression?
Just like the diversity of the symptoms, there are also different types of depression which have their extent and affect individuals in different ways. Moreover, there are also different names for the same type of depression as the major depressive disorder is also referred to as clinical depression.
Major depressive disorder
Major depression is also named as the unipolar depression. A large number of individuals are suffered from this type of depression. If you feel sadness, and emptiness most of the time even without any evident reason then you are suffering from a major depressive disorder. Individuals with major depressive disorder do not pleasure in those activities that were once enjoyable.
Whenever you find that your depression is from about two to three weeks and you are facing difficulty in different phases of your life then you should immediately treat your major depressive disorder or clinical depression. If 4 to 5 symptoms of major depression are identified by the experts then they develop the therapeutic strategy.
Types of Major Depression
Major depression is also categorized into different types which are as follows:
Melancholy
Melancholy is a state of sadness. Affected individuals think that there is no happiness in their life. Even when anything good happens in their life they do not feel happy and feel the mental disturbance. Moreover, they also start losing interest in their activities. They mainly feel hopeless and sad at the starting time of the day. Likewise, their intrusive thoughts also make it difficult for them to pass the entire day.
Psychotic depression
This type of depression is linked with psychosis. Individuals suffering from psychotic depression are unable to develop their contact with reality. They remain in their thoughts or imaginary worlds. They think that all they see or hear is real, not fake. Hallucinations and delusions are the common psychotic symptoms that affect their mental state.
Postnatal depression
This type of depression only occurs in females and occurs after the pregnancy. Almost every second female suffers from postnatal depression after giving birth to a child which not only affect her mental health but also the baby.
Prenatal depression
If the depression occurs during the pregnancy then it is referred to as prenatal depression. Depressed females are unable to handle their life chores. Moreover, their relationship with their loved ones is also affected.
Anxious distress
This type of depression involves a sense of restlessness and tense behavior that affects the mood of individuals. Individuals remain under continuous stress as they think anything bad can happen in the future. Therefore, they do not live or enjoy their present and remain in the past or future. They do not have control over their thoughts and they think that they are useless.
Bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder is also a mental illness and is referred to as manic depression, therefore categorized as the type of depression. It involves two different phases which include manic and depressive phases. At one time, individuals feel sad while at other times, they experience extreme pressure or excitement. In both phases, they experience extreme situations. So if you find someone who is experiencing mood swings then there is a greater possibility that the person is battling with bipolar disorder.
Recurrent depressive disorder
If you have the symptoms of at least two different depressive episodes then you are suffering from the recurrent depressive disorder. The symptoms of this type of depression can be mild or severe depending on the mental state of the individual.
Dysthymic disorder
Dysthymic depression is a type of depression that lasts for a longer period approximately 2 years. Moreover, there is a quite resemblance between the symptoms of dysthymic disorder and clinical depression but the difference lies in the extent of symptoms. The symptoms of dysthymic disorder are less severe as compared to the symptoms of major or clinical depression.
Premenstrual dysphoric disorder
This disorder is a severe form of premenstrual syndrome. Affected females usually experience more intense mood swings as compared to normal situations. Moreover, they feel difficulty in passing their entire day due to intense pain and irritability. But as the period ends, the situation gets normal.
Cyclothymic disorder
Cyclothymic disorder exhibits a resemblance with both bipolar disorder and dysthymic disorder. However, if we compare the symptoms of cyclothymic disorder and bipolar disorder, then the symptoms are less severe. Likewise, the major factor of resemblance with dysthymic disorder is the longer duration.
Seasonal affective disorder
As the name indicates, this involves the phase of sadness that occurs in different seasons. Individuals get sad during winter or spring while get happy in summer. Their mood is directly linked with the season. Due to their sadness, they feel reduced energy levels and prefer to sleep more.
Situtaional depression
In this type of depression, mood depends on the situation. Whenever the person finds any source of happiness, then he gets happy but can panic about getting any bad stimulus. For example, if a person loses his job and loses any loved one, then delve into the sea of sadness. However, as the situation passes, a person can immediately recover.
Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder
This type of depression majorly affects children and adolescents. They show the tantrums more than usual. Moreover, they also face difficulty in remembering things due to memory issues.
Atypical depression
Atypical depression is not continuous or persistent. Whenever the affected person finds anything pleasurable, then moods get sifted and the person feels happy. Due to this, atypical depression is also referred to as mood reactivity.
Treatment-resistant depression
If you are battling with depression but have tried many treatment methods and still not getting the desired or productive mental health outcomes, then you might be suffering from treatment-resistant depression. Moreover, there are multiple reasons behind the resistance. In most cases, if the person is suffering from any other mental illness, then attention gets diverted from the depression and the person becomes depression resistant.
Teen depression
If we talk about the teen depression, then it revolves around the teenagers. As compared to children, teenagers are more affected by environmental stress factors and therefore acquire more anxiety and depression.
How can I find professional help for Depression?
If you think you or you know someone is having depression symptoms then take a step ahead to get professional mental health assistance. Renewed Mental Health Group cares for your mental well-being. We provide you with a team of skilled mental health experts who provide you with the most effective and reliable treatment for depression that comprises psychiatric medications and psychotherapies. Despite variations in different types of depression, you can treat your depression and recover. Our experts employ different psychotherapies including cognitive behavioral therapy, interpersonal therapy as well as dialectical behavioral therapy. So there is no need to take stress until you are getting our professional assistance in empowering your mental well-being.
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