I used to think depression was something that people could easily snap themselves out of. By finding activities to do, making more friends and just being a more social person in general, I thought it’d be nothing too hard to get over. However, after taking interest in things like loneliness and anxiety disorders and doing some research I’ve found that depression is not just a state of feeling, but a mental state as well. Depressed people have problems bigger than not being happy with their lives.
How does the mood disorder manage this? Well, when one is depressed, which can be triggered by plenty of events such as mental problems, chemical regulations in the brain and stressful life events, they suffer from poor chemical reaction in their brain. The reactions influence the perceptions and experiences. These chemicals, working in the nerve cells, make it possible for you to understand and take in these experiences, but when depressed the balance is thrown off. Some chemical such as serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine are involved in the imbalances that take place in the brain and they are called monoamines.
A study done by Dr. Jeffrey Meyer at the Canadian-based Centre for Addiction and Mental Health would suggest there is a certain chemical in the brain that cause the imbalance of others. He found that something called monoamine oxidase A was capable of affecting the chemicals mentioned previously. In people with depression monoamine oxidase A was up to 34% higher. In short, depression actively affects the brains ability to control feelings and perceptions.
These imbalances can result in a number of negative feelings that could be detrimental. Depressed people experience things like fatigue or loss of energy frequently, feelings of worthlessness often and diminished interest in experiences they once found pleasure in. I found a video online that did a great job of explaining it in a simple, understandable way!