Just about everyone gets the blues from time to time – that feeling of sadness or grief that usually results from unpleasant life experiences. While many people-refer to the blues as depression, however, true clinical depression is as different from the blues as pneumonia is from a head cold.
The blues is a temporary and usually normal reaction to stressful life situations. Most cases don’t involve physical symptoms, loss of self-esteem, or suicidal thoughts, and the negative state usually passes within a few hours or days.
Depression on the other hand, is an intense, pervasive and long-lasting disorder of mood that attacks the body as well as the mind, often resulting in serious problems in work, social, and physical functioning. Unfortunately, some people don’t recognize depression for the serious illness it is. They think of it as a personality flaw, a sign of weakness or a character defect.
To go further in depth, depression occurs in at least three different dynamics. People in the first category are chronically depressed. Depression is built into them and may be passed from generation to generation.
The second dynamic concerns lasting grief that occurs after a severe loss. Its severity is entirely subjective but might occur with the loss of a child, spouse, or loved one, an amputation, mastectomy, a sizable career setback, or loss of functioning brought about by disease or trauma.
The third dynamic involves loss accompanied by anger. People who have unresolved issues with a departed loved one often do not know that they are angry. This despair can set in after messy divorces or after a close relative or friend passes away. Since they are not able to deal with these problems by interacting with the object of their anger, they take their antagonism out on themselves instead.
Loss is the common element in all three dynamics. It could be a loss of time, an object, an idealization of an object, or a person.
Symptoms of depression often include disturbances with sleep, appetite and body weight, energy, concentration, and sexual functioning. There is frequently excessive guilt, feelings of worthlessness, loss of interest or pleasure in activities, and, in severe cases, thoughts of or attempts at suicide.
Some depressions are the result of a chemical imbalance and may only be treated by anti-depressant medication, some require psychotherapy, and still others a combination of methods.
Those with chronic depression can’t be helped except by antidepressants. In these cases, psychotherapy may be of little help and a poor use of time and money. Time helps a person who has suffered a severe loss as well as an involved other person who listens to the aggrieved as he or she gives words to the pain. This does not necessarily have to be a therapist, but if there is not a strong support system, treatment is very necessary. Finally, only a strong guide can help people whose loss is accompanied with anger move toward slow recognition and safe expression of their real feelings. This is usually the only path out of melancholy.
The good news is that more than eighty percent of depression sufferers can be treated successfully. If you or someone you care about is depressed, seek help now by contacting a qualified mental health specialist.