Depression
Everyone struggles with feeling down or hopeless at times, maybe when they’ve lost their job, or gone through a difficult break-up. Sometimes, though, these feelings can go further and interfere with day to day life – this can be a sign of depression.
Depression is more than just feeling sad – it can affect your sleep, your appetite, and your interest in the things you normally enjoy, and usually lasts for weeks or months rather than days.
It’s not that unusual to experience this – about 1 in 10 of us will at some point, but you may find that you need some extra help to get past it. The good news is, there’s plenty of help out there, as well as things you can do yourself that might help you feel better, and most people make a full recovery.
Symptoms Of Depression
Depression can affect people in a lot of different ways. You might find you feel low and hopeless, cry a lot, get anxious, or even angry. It may be hard to find the enthusiasm to do the things you used to enjoy, or even get out of bed in the morning.
Sometimes depression can make you feel very hopeless and think that life isn’t worth living anymore, or it can make you want to hurt yourself. If you’re feeling like this, our Crisis Services page has information on people who might be able to help, or you could talk to your doctor or a trusted friend – there’s no need to go through this alone.
Depression can also affect you in other ways– it can affect your sleep, or weight, make you feel tired, lose interest in sex. It’s also not unusual to get odd aches and pains, become constipated, or even find your periods have changed. It may be worth bringing up any physical symptoms with your doctor so they can rule out other possible causes.
Sometimes depression can be quite mild, but it can be very severe and make life very difficult. Either way it can be a very distressing experience, and whilst there are things you can do to try to get better, it’s not something you can just ‘get over’ by ‘pulling yourself together’.
Causes
It can be difficult to say exactly what has caused you to become depressed, and often there is more than one cause. Some possible factors are:
depression ‘runs in the family’
events in your childhood such as abuse, neglect, or bereavement
your personality and the way you think about the world
chronic illness, or illnesses specifically linked to depression
stressful changes in your life
social isolation
medications
substance misuse
diet
Speaking with your GP can lead to a referral to services such as the Brighton and Hove Wellbeing Service, which provides local NHS services such as talking therapies, guided self-help and counselling.
You can also find out about other sources of support and treatment by go to Minds information section here
