Are you ill?
There are many forms of sadness, two of which are:
- A general, natural and temporary reaction to a major life event
- Part of a debilitating illness such as depression
At its worst, depression has been described as the greatest pain anyone could ever experience.
Do you doubt that you'll ever recover?
When you are severely depressed it feels as though you have ended up in a black hole and that you'll never get out. In fact, you may be firmly convinced that:
- You will never recover
- Even though you have suffered from bouts of depression in the past and got better, you won't recover this time round
When suffering from depression you see the negative side of everything.
Are you swallowed up by sadness?
Sadness permeates everything and nothing can make you happy. You may have started doubting yourself because you no longer have warm feelings for your partner, children and/or grandchildren.
You begin to question your abilities. Suddenly you begin to doubt whether you can do things that you could once have done blindfolded. Your self-confidence takes a real battering.
Do you worry all the time?
You may begin to sleep badly or find it hard to get to sleep. Perhaps you wake up an hour or two earlier than normal and can't get back to sleep. You lie there pondering all the negative things that pop into your head. You may therefore be:
- Incredibly tired
- Drained of energy - you can't even manage the basics of day-to-day life
- Lacking in concentration, making it hard to read and do other things that you used to enjoy
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Have you lost your appetite?
You may stop enjoying your food and find that it no longer tastes like it used to. Sometimes you have no appetite at all and you may start losing weight.
Is it your fault?
You begin to wonder whether it's your own fault that you feel so unwell. Some people can think of nothing else, but you must remember that:
It's NOT your fault that you're suffering from depression, just like it wouldn't be your fault if you got diabetes.
Even the happiest person in the world can suffer from depression as a result of changes in the brain's chemical balance.
Can you cure depression?
Unfortunately it's just not possible to:
- Work your way out of depression
- Pull yourself together and get over it
These are some of the greatest myths surrounding the illness. And that's exactly what they are - myths. What's more, they harm everyone who suffers from depression.
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Do you have destructive thoughts?
You may begin to think that:
- Your family would be better off without you
- It would be best if you were not around
If things are bad, self-destructive thoughts may cross your mind. Do you think about suicide?
Are your self-destructive thoughts becoming more urgent and persistent? If so, then contact your nearest acute psychiatric unit where you can talk to the doctor on duty. He or she may well feel that you should be admitted to hospital.
Are you suffering from grief or depression?
It's important to recognize the difference between:
- Sadness triggered by the loss of a close relative or friend
- Sadness triggered by depression
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Are you reacting with grief?
If you have lost a close relative you may be suffering from grief. Grief does not have the same consequences as depression in terms of quality of life.
- Grief is not as all-embracing or as severe as depression
- Grief fades with time
If you need treatment for your grief, you will typically be offered counselling.
Are you reacting with sadness?
Everyone can feel depressed after a major life event. People often feel that it's just a matter of sitting the grief out. But they couldn't be more wrong. It is therefore important to point out that:
If you feel down for longer than a short period you should discuss things with your doctor.
Not all symptoms of depression manifest themselves at the same time or in everyone who has depression. We are all individuals and we may differ quite markedly in the way our symptoms manifest. The severity of the symptoms also varies considerably.
Read more about the symptoms of different types of depression and about how doctors and psychiatrists make diagnoses.
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