Depression

What is depression?

Depression is a condition that is endlessly painful and engulfs your being. Depression takes away life’s joy, reduces your confidence, robs you of energy, plays havoc with your appetite, destroys your goals, and wipes away focus and logical thought in one powerful sweep.

Depression is a lifelong battle for many people. For others, it might be a response to a challenging, life-altering situation like divorce or bereavement. Seasonal changes and the loss of daylight can bring on depression (seasonal affective disorder), and many women experience depression after having a baby (postpartum depression). Some people who have depression also have an anxiety disorder.

Many people who have depression resist seeking treatment because they’re ashamed of the way they feel or don’t understand they have a treatable illness. Not getting treatment for depression gives it time to worsen until it becomes major depressive disorder.

At this point, depression can take over your life, making it impossible to work or even function normally. Severely depressed people can feel driven to self-harm and suicide if they don’t receive appropriate treatment.

What are the symptoms of depression?

Depression makes every day feel like one where the skies are gray, and your mood is blue, despite all the rewarding aspects of your life. Typical emotions you might feel when you have depression include:

• Despair
• Constant sadness
• Tearfulness
• Self-loathing
• Guilt
• Shame
• Irritability
• Frustration

Your thoughts get hijacked by depression, so it can be impossible to see the world around you as it is. Instead, everything is seen and experienced through the filter of your depression, which distorts everything and turns each day into a battle you must endure.

How is depression treated?

Counseling is vital in treating depression. Your depression might be due to an identifiable event or experience that talking therapies can help you come to terms with. Even if your depression has no identifiable trigger and is more to do with faulty brain chemistry, counseling can help rebalance the chemicals in your brain.

Medications can also rebalance brain chemicals, increasing the feel-good neurotransmitters like serotonin and norepinephrine. A combination of counseling and medication often works best for moderate to severe depression.

The team at Verathy has tips for ways to help yourself when you have mild to moderate depression.

Communication with loved ones and supportive people in your life can be invaluable. It may also be a good idea to write down your feelings and thoughts in a journal each day. Find a daily affirmation that you repeat like a mantra, for example, “I am strong” or “my challenges bring me better opportunities.” Think about these as you practice your breathing exercises.

It’s common to lose interest in your appearance and personal hygiene when you have depression. Try and get yourself in the shower and dressed, and enjoy the small things like the smell of your soap. Exercise is proven to help people who have depression, and even five minutes can make a difference.

Loss of appetite and comfort eating are two sides of the same coin in people who have depression. Try to eat a healthy diet and use supplements to boost your overall well-being. Your Verathy provider can help you with eating a healthier diet. Try different approaches like meditation, yoga, tai chi, or anything that gives your mind some peace and time to heal.

With help from the team at Verathy, you can recover from depression. Call the office or request an appointment online today. Their telehealth services are available to patients living throughout Virginia, Maryland, and DC.