Each person has a different experience, but depression normally involves an ongoing sense of sadness, apathy, or hopelessness. Often, those with addiction also struggle with depression or anxiety, which means dual diagnosis treatment is a must. At Red Oak Recovery, we understand how challenging mental health issues like depression are.
Full Answer
What does it feel like to be depressed?
Depression feels like there is no pleasure or joy in life. According to Anjani Amladi, MD, a board-certified psychiatrist, it’s so much more than being sad. According to Amladi, “depression robs people of things they once loved, and for many people, they feel like nothing will bring them joy again.”
What is depressive depression and how does it affect you?
Depression, a mood disorder that can cause mild to severe symptoms, can affect how you feel, think, and manage daily activities. Many people believe that depression needs to be debilitating and cause significant problems in their life in order to seek help.
Can depression cause body aches and headaches?
Amladi says it is not unusual for people with depression to feel body aches, headaches, muscle tension, and even nausea. Information presented in this article may be triggering to some people.
What is the best treatment for severe depression?
Psychotherapy, or talk therapy, is a common treatment for depression. For people with debilitating depression, seeing a therapist regularly can be a catalyst for improvement. Your therapist can help you learn to adjust to stressors and to respond or react in ways that produce healthier emotions.
How does depression make you feel inside?
Depression is a serious mental illness that can interfere with a person's life. It can cause long-lasting and severe feelings of sadness, hopelessness, and a loss of interest in activities. It can also cause physical symptoms of pain, appetite changes, and sleep problems.
What is it like to be diagnosed with depression?
Fatigue or loss of energy almost every day. Feelings of hopelessness or worthlessness or excessive guilt almost every day. Problems with concentration or making decisions almost every day. Recurring thoughts of death or suicide, suicide plan, or suicide attempt.
What are the three major signs of depression?
SymptomsFeelings of sadness, tearfulness, emptiness or hopelessness.Angry outbursts, irritability or frustration, even over small matters.Loss of interest or pleasure in most or all normal activities, such as sex, hobbies or sports.Sleep disturbances, including insomnia or sleeping too much.More items...•
How long does treatment last for depression?
Major depressive disorder (MDD) MDD episodes can last between 6 and 18 months or longer. If you start treatment soon after you experience the first symptoms, you might be more likely to recover and prevent future episodes.
Is depression cured completely?
There's no cure for depression, but there are lots of effective treatments. People can recover from depression and live long and healthy lives.
What depression does to the brain?
As depression starts to affect the brain's chemical balances, neurons in the hippocampus shrink, which can cause difficulty concentrating and memory loss. A shrunken hippocampus can also make completing familiar tasks difficult, which can lead to hopelessness, guilt, and anxiety.
What are the 5 levels of depression?
Types of DepressionMajor Depression.Persistent Depressive Disorder.Bipolar Disorder.Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)Psychotic Depression.Peripartum (Postpartum) Depression.Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD)'Situational' Depression.More items...•
Who is most likely to suffer from depression?
Age. Major depression is most likely to affect people between the ages of 45 and 65. “People in middle age are at the top of the bell curve for depression, but the people at each end of the curve, the very young and very old, may be at higher risk for severe depression,” says Walch.
Do I have a type of depression?
You may have depression if you have experienced at least some of the following symptoms nearly every day for at least two weeks: Feelings of sadness, anxiety, or emptiness. Feelings of hopelessness. Feelings of guilt or worthlessness.
How long is too long to be depressed?
So how long do depressive episodes last? Usually, the depressive episode length ranges from six months to eight months, depending on the person. While some people may have depression that fades, others may struggle with depression on and off their whole life.
Can therapy make you feel worse?
It is actually normal to occasionally feel bad or worse after therapy, especially during the beginning of your work with a therapist. It can be a sign of progress. As counterintuitive as it may sound, feeling bad during therapy can be good.
Is depression a permanent condition?
There's no cure for depression, but you still have plenty of options for treatment, all of which can improve your symptoms and minimize their impact on your daily life.
What Does Depression Feel Like?
Everyone has sad feelings from time to time, especially if something bad happens. However, this doesn’t automatically mean you have depression. Depression feels like more than just sadness. When you are clinically depressed you have more than just a passing sad feeling. It goes much deeper than that.
Treatment for Depression
Treating a depression diagnosis often requires the aid of dual diagnosis treatment. Many people with depression resort to substance use to numb their depression. However, this only leads to other problems, such as a substance use disorder.
Reach Out for Help Today
When you or someone you love is struggling with mental health and/or substance use, finding help is the first step in recovery. Completing a treatment program greatly improves your chances of achieving life-long sobriety and decreases your risk of experiencing a relapse. We also treat mental health issues as a primary diagnosis, including:
Anxiety and addiction
How do these two problems develop and influence each other? It often starts when a person has a high level of anxiety about something in their life and does not know how to handle the emotions associated with that stress. They may turn to alcohol, marijuana, or other substances to calm their nerves.
What Is Depression?
Depression isn’t just a feeling: It’s a serious medical condition. Depression, also known as major depressive disorder, is a mood disorder that can make you feel a sense of constant sadness and general lack of interest in life.
What Does Depression Feel Like?
It can be easy to mistake depression for general grief, sadness, or even anxiety. But while grief, sadness, and anxiety typically pass after a traumatic event, depression lingers. For example, if you’re experiencing grief, you might find that painful feelings come in waves, intermixed with welcome moments of happiness or cheerfulness.
Diagnosing Depression
If you feel that you may be suffering from depression, your doctor will look for a few specific symptoms in addition to your medical and family histories, environmental factors, and overall physical health. For a depression diagnosis, you must exhibit several of the following symptoms for at least two weeks at a time:
Treating Depression
Once you receive a depression diagnosis, there are several different courses of treatment. Some patients opt to start with psychotherapy, or “talk therapy,” which involves discussing your feelings with a professional psychologist. This can help you identify patterns and coping mechanisms to help you feel better over time.
What is Depression?
Feeling upset or sad sometimes, is normal. Everyone experiences feeling down from time to time. But when those feelings won’t go away, it could be a sign of depression. Depression is more than just feeling a bit low. It can impact how you cope with day to day tasks or how you feel. It can even affect how you eat, sleep or study.
Symptoms of Depression
The symptoms of depression can vary from person to person. Some of the signs that you might be depressed include:
What Does Depression Feel Like?
Depression can feel different depending on the situation. It can vary from person to person, as well as depending on how intense your depression is.
Social Experiences
Most people who have depression describe it as a lonely experience. It’s common to feel like you’re completely alone in the world. This can make social experiences difficult. You might feel like everyone is against you or that you’re rejected by people. Depression can be isolating, and you might feel like you’re separated from everyone else.
Physical Experiences
The physical side effects of depression can include tiredness, aches and pains, or feeling shaky. Headaches are also common. Some people describe a feeling of pressure in their heads.
Treatment for Depression
If you think you might be depressed, it’s important to get help from a professional. You should book an appointment with your doctor who can check if you have depression and choose the best treatment for you. There are different treatment options.
The science
According to the American Psychiatric Association, depression is a mood disorder that negatively affects how you think, feel, and act. It can lead to a variety of emotional and physical burdens, including feeling sad, a loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed, feeling worthless or guilty, and thoughts of death or suicide.
The abyss: Mark
When Mark described his experience of depression, he described a place. ‘You can go into a very dark place. And no matter what you do, it’s really hard to come out.’
Depression feels like forever
When asked what is missing from the common understanding of depressive feelings, Hanna believes that recognising how long the sensations last is at the core of depression misconceptions.
Empathy and understanding
In many ways, understanding what depression feels like is an impossible task, as the voices featured here would agree. However, by seeking out the voices of those living with the condition we can reach a more empathic level of understanding.
What is the best treatment for depression?
Psychotherapy, or talk therapy, is a common treatment for depression. For people with debilitating depression, seeing a therapist regularly can be a catalyst for improvement. Your therapist can help you learn to adjust to stressors and to respond or react in ways that produce healthier emotions.
What are the risk factors for depression?
Risk factors for debilitating depression include: 1 long-term depression 2 family history of MDD 3 persistent, high levels of stress 4 chemical and hormonal changes 5 other illnesses 6 personal life changes, such as divorce or job loss
