Depression Symptoms
Depression –a serious Psychiatric Condition
Introduction
Depression is one of the many mental illnesses afflicting the humanity since antiquity. There is mention in Old Testament of even King Saul suffering from serious depressive episodes in his life. However the incidence has increased manifold in modern times of stressful living. It is currently rated as the biggest cause of disability with more than a hundred million persons in the world estimated to be suffering from this disorder. Out of this about twenty million (20% of the world total) are stated to be in the US alone.
A Mood Disorder
Modern medical science considers depression as a mood disorder. Depending upon their severity & persistence the mood disorders are classified into various categories. Depressive episode is one of them. As per statistical the data available, the life-time risk of depression is more in females than in males by a factor of almost 2:1
Duration of Depressive Episode
On an average a depressive episode lasts from 4-6 months. About 40% of patients under treatment show improvement in 3 months, 60% in 6 months and 80% within a year. However about 15- 20% of them turn chronic in whose case the illness may continue for many years. In some patients the depressive episodes are recurrent while in others these are persistent.
Causes of the illness
Onset of depression usually occurs in response to a stress or trauma but genetic factors are considered to play an important role in occurrence of prolonged & severe depression categorized as the illness. Environmental factors, too, have been documented to have aggravated the condition in a number of patients. Medical community & psychologists offer many different theories for occurrence of the various mood disorders including depression. Some of these can be grouped as under:
- Biological theories
- Biochemical theories
- Neuroendocrine theories
- Stress theory
- Cognitive & behavioral theories
- Faulty brain structure
Major Symptoms of Depression
1. Pervasive Sadness: The most prominent feature & symptom of a depressive episode is the persisting sadness and loss of interest or pleasure in almost all the activities all through the day. This sadness of mood continues over many days together and does not respond to any environmental stimulus. The degree of sadness is much more severe than in case of any ordinary grief or loss.
2. Social Withdrawal: The person suffering from depressive episode starts avoiding any social interaction and withdraws into a cocoon of his own. The patient exhibits highly reduced ability to function in the interpersonal areas and tends to avoid involvement in any pleasurable activities.
3. Pessimistic Behavior: The person suffering from depression exhibits pessimistic attitude reflected through feelings of
- Hopelessness
- Helplessness
- Worthlessness ( sense of inferiority)
- Nihilism (feeling that the world is coming to an end)
4. Lack of Concentration: The subject suffering from this disorder also finds it difficult to concentrate on any subject, take decisions & faces difficult in remembering things. He/she also lacks in initiative & drive.
5. Psychotic Symptoms: In some cases of depression, the patients suffer from hallucinations (hearing of imaginary voices & seeing things which really are not there), delusions (of nihilism, poverty, guilt etc.) & marked stupor.
6. Sleep abnormalities: In many depressed persons sleep abnormalities are common. Some of these are lack of proper sleep, delayed onset of sleep & frequent awakenings.
7. Suicidal thoughts: Another common symptom accompanying depressive moods is the suicidal ideation. Though almost all depressed persons carry the risk of suicide, the risk is more in case of patients who express suicidal ideas in writing ( may be in their diaries) or verbally through conversations and must be taken seriously especially in early stages of the illness & where there is an expression of marked hopelessness.
8. Physical symptoms: Physical symptoms like vague body aches, heaviness of head are also commonly reported in such patients. These features are invariably present in severe depressive cases.
9. Disturbance in Biological Functions: Biological functions too get disturbed in severe cases of depression. These symptoms include insomnia/hypersomnia, loss of appetite. Other common symptoms in this category are loss of sex drive & weight gain.
10. Psychomotor activity: In patients especially below 40 years of age, the voice becomes monotonous, the patient becomes stuporous in case of severe attacks of depression and in older patients their marked increase in agitation & restlessness. The patient feels uneasy, is unable to sit still and frequently engages in activities like hand-wriggling etc.