In October 2016, the World Health Organization launched a one-year campaign to ensure that more people with depression, in all countries, both seek and get help. We feel so strongly about this issue that we have decided to make it the focus of this month.
Depression is a severe disorder. No matter what you do or where you go, you carry the weight of depression around with you.
If you think you are suffering from depression, but you are not actively looking for ways to identify the issue, you are hurting yourself. You can overcome depression by identifying the symptoms of depression at the right time and by arming yourself with the right knowledge.
Depression is not an illness that you can take for granted. It can be linked with other disorders and has deep root causes. The first step to fighting depression is understanding the symptoms, and everyone’s symptoms are different.
The symptoms are so common that you might not know that you are depressed. Let us start by identifying 15 major symptoms of depression.
If you are experiencing more than 5 symptoms listed below, then you need help.
Experiencing unexplainable physical pain that persists for a long time
If your physician declares that you are healthy but you are in physical pain, then you should reconsider the advice and go for a second opinion as it might be a symptom of Depression.
You oversleep or get no sleep at all
When you suffer from depression, you end up feeling empty, sad or guilty. These feelings are quite strong and negative. As a result, your sleep will be disturbed. A normal adult requires 7-8 hours of sleep every day, on an average. If you are sleeping for more or less than the average time, it is better to take the advice of a professional. Oversleeping and insomnia do not always imply that you are depressed, but they are closely related.
Extreme changes in the levels of hunger
Like sleep, hunger also gets affected by depression. Some people eat more than they usually do thinking it would make them happy, while others tend to lose interest in eating. They thus gain enormous weight or lose many pounds.
You lose energy quickly
When you are depressed, you get tired for no reason. Jobs you do without venturing out, such as watching TV, lying on the bed might also leave you feeling tired at the end of the day. It is not a good sign and you might need a medical help.
Changes in your pace of doing work
Depression pushes you into a state of panic. As a result, the speed of doing things changes. You either get agitated and do things faster than usual or slow down drastically as they lose interest in life.
You lose connect with other people
When you suffer from depression, you lose trust in people. You feel lonely even when you are surrounded by your family and friends. You lose the connection with them, hence you do not share your problems or ask for help.
You mask your private sorrow with outward appearance
You often end up feeling not strong enough, not healthy enough or not happy enough. This will make guilty unconsciously. You fake a smile and tell people that you are okay because you would not want to trouble others with your problems. You hesitate to seek help.
You lose interest in everything
Depression affects the way you look at life. What interested you once upon a time is irrelevant to you now. The more depression starts to worsen, the less enjoyable these activities become. Activities, like partying, reading books and hanging out with people start to bore you.
You get easily annoyed
It is not unnatural to feel insignificant when you are depressed. This upsets you without your knowledge. You begin to develop negative feelings. These emotions affect the bond you share with others. You push people away even if they try to help you. It is one of the major symptom of Depression.
You no longer differentiate feelings
When you are depressed, you don’t get upset or mad when somebody tries to irritate you. Happiness and sadness are the words that got erased from your dictionary. You share a laugh when someone cracks a joke only because you are expected to do so but it doesn’t trigger your funny bone. You become neutral to feelings. You feel that your feelings do not matter anymore.
Your attention spans become shorter
When you are depressed, you lose concentration because of the negative and disturbing ideas that occupy your mind. These thoughts decrease your attention spans and you lose focus on important areas of life like studies, work, interests etc.
You constantly feel that you are committing a sin
When you are depressed and commit a mistake, regardless of the importance of the mistake, you start to feel extremely guilty. The feeling of committing a grave mistake persists for a very long time until you go undergo counselling multiple times.
You feel very empty
A normal adult feels empty once in awhile. This usually happens when your life is too busy and you do not have the time to take a break, and this feeling vanishes quickly. However, people suffering from depression feel empty quite often. Even after taking time off or going on a vacation, they still feel the same.
You begin to hate yourself
When you are suffering from depression, you treat yourself with contempt. You see your illness as disgusting and abnormal. You see yourself as a weak person and hate yourself for that.
How much is the amount of hatred varies from one person to another. Some people can’t stand the reflection of their own self in the mirror.
And sometimes, you want to end it all, completely
People suffering from depression are found to be thinking about how they are going to die and what happens after their death. The thoughts keep coming back. This is a very dangerous symptom and needs immediate attention. You need helps. There is more to life than this rough phase of yours.
Depression is a silent killer that exhausts you emotionally and mentally irrespective of the cause. It is better to look for the symptoms of depression as soon as possible. At an early stage, you can fight it by changing your diet regime, reinforcing sleep patterns or practicing yoga.
If the problem persists, consult a doctor as early as possible. The fight against depression begins with taking it seriously and seeking for help. There is always a light at the end of a dark tunnel.
For mild depression, physical activity always helps. Check out here.