Welcome to Self Help and Wellness
Depression Mood Article
. For a permanent link to this article, or to bookmark it for further reading, click here.
You may also listen to this article by using the following controls.
Clinical Depression Symptoms
from: Self Help and WellnessClinical depression symptoms can be identified and documented based on medically accepted research. Depression can hide behind many behaviors and moods making it difficult to diagnose at times. Not everyone simply sits and stares out the window or refuses to get out of bed in the morning and get dressed. Some people may not even be aware they're experiencing a mild form of depression. So how do doctors determine you are depressed?
Studies of clinical depression have researched behavioral, cognitive and physical states and activities in order to determine what causes depression. Clinical depression symptoms that are physical often begin in the brain. In a nutshell, the brain works by sending messages between neurons using neurotransmitters. These transmitters are controlled by chemicals produced in the brain.
* Dopamine
* Serotonin
* Norepinephrine
There are other chemicals used in the transmission process, but these are the primary three. When these chemicals are not produced in the right quantity, the neurotransmitters don't work properly. This affects your emotions, feelings and thoughts. When these chemical processes lead to depression, there are many symptoms manifested. The key to identifying depression often lies in comparing current behavior to past behavior. For example, a person who previously enjoyed social activities and now won't leave the house might be depressed.
There may be other physical clinical depression symptoms. They include sudden changes in weight or unexplained high blood pressure.
Other clinical depression symptoms besides the brain chemical levels are related to thoughts and actions. A person who exhibits clinical depression symptoms will most likely have bad thoughts frequently. They see life as bleak and getting bleaker. They don't look forward to anything and don't want to participate in normal activities. A person with depression often sees their life as full of only mistakes and lost opportunities and this translates to hopelessness. If you see yourself in this description, then you are probably experiencing a level of depression. Simply stated – life is never hopeless.
Other clinical depression symptoms are related to behavior. Someone who is depressed might cry a lot or exhibit signs of anxiety. A depressed person may withdraw from all activities, or even when they do participate, they are obviously having no fun. Other behaviors may include short tempered responses to people trying to engage them in conversation or a desire to just be left alone all the time.
Finally, clinical depression symptoms can also be very apparent. A person with bipolar disorder or mania clearly needs treatment. If you have thoughts that are always dreary and self-critical, have lost interest in your family or friends or have unexplained physical changes, you should seek treatment. These are just a few of the signs of depression.
Depression Mood News
Shaping up your brain with exercise - Georgia Straight
Experts say exercise is a kind of Miracle-Gro for your neocortex, boosting mental agility and mood along with physical fitness. For some people, fitness comes naturally. Maybe they were on every single sports team growing up, or their idea of the ...
Read more...Using Your Thoughts to Improve your Mood - San Francisco Examiner
Emails to check, voice mails to listen to, appointments to keep and errands to run. Life can be stressful. A little stress is good – it helps you get your reports in on time or your house clean before company comes. But too much stress is harmful ...
Read more...Signs of depression - Channel NewsAsia
SINGAPORE - When Mr Tan - a teacher who declined to give his full name - began complaining about frequent neck and back aches, nausea and heart palpitations three years ago, his wife thought they were just a figment of his imagination. After all ...
Read more...State should OK medical use of marijuana - Daily Journal
Access to medical marijuana for sick patients would be a no-brainer in a just and caring society. However, we live in New Jersey, where the politicians generally vote based on which side "contributes" the most money. It is obvious that drug companies ...
Read more...Married Couple Splits Over Extreme PMS - KNx 1070
( courtesy of bbc.co.uk ) - When doctors told Marie Seward that her period mood swings and depression were extreme she felt both relieved and angry. For 17 years the mother of one had struggled through almost ten days of hell each month. "You think ...
Read more...Fix Your Mood with Brain Food - Huffingtonpost.com
Have you noticed? A lot of people are feeling funky lately. With over $1.9 billion spent annually on antidepressants, and sixty million Americans (26% of the adult population) experiencing either depression or anxiety, Americans are not a happy bunch ...
Read more...