Depression is a mental illness which often but not always is
part of another medical condition. The depressed person suffers from a
persistently low mood which also affects his/her ability to follow daily
activities by causing a feeling of sadness, hopelessness and disinterest.
Factors such as genes, environment, lifestyle, brain activity, psychology and
personality can contribute how likely a person is to experience depression.
Every year about 6% of adults experience some form of
depression in Australia. Children and teenager are in danger of becoming
depressed as well. As they express themselves in different ways than adults it
is important to seek a doctors or even a specialists help.
A depression can be the reaction to a distressing situations
(such as death of a family member or friend, loss of job, even pregnancy – some
women experience postnatal depression). This kind of depression is called
reactive depression.
Other people suffer from a chemical imbalance in their brain
causing them to become depressed. This is called endogenous depression.
Even a mild
depression can have an impact on everyday life. A mildly depressed person
is usually easily irritated, has less
interest in things they generally
enjoy and lacks motivation for both work and home as well as social activities.
While not as well as when in a healthy state of mind they are mostly still able
to function and therefore mild depressions often go undiagnosed which can lead
to them worsening.
Moderate depression
are often defined by the depressed person having real difficulties following
work, home and social activities. No
interest for anything they usually enjoy caused simple things to be done
with a lot of effort or just getting neglected. In those cases self-confidence
and/or self-esteem is also lowered which is often both causing and worsened by
reduced productivity in a snowball effect. At this state the
depressed person tends to worry more about unnecessary things and is more
likely to feeling hurt and offended especially in personal relationships.
In a case of severe or major depression the depressed person
is under considerable distress and has often lost all their self-esteem.
Feelings of uselessness and guilt are common, thoughts of suicide are present
and an obvious cause of danger. The depression often interferes with their
ability to follow even the most basic things as eat and sleep and therefore
ability to continue with work, domestic and social activities. Those symptoms
are often severe enough to be noticed by surrounding people.
Symptoms than can be present when depressed are:
·
Abnormally low mood for at least 2 weeks
·
Loss of interest and lack of energy
·
Loss of confidence, self-esteem
·
Feeling of guilt
·
Thought of death and suicide
·
Poor concentration
·
Agitation or retardation
·
Insomnia or oversleeping
·
No appetite or overeating
Medication can help to reduce or even eliminate the symptoms
of depression often by restoring the brains chemical balance. Unfortunately
there is no “one pill fits all’, therefore many people have to find an antidepressant
that works for them by trial and error which can be extremely frustrating –
especially while in a depression. Additionally there is a broad range of possible
side effects accompanying each antidepressant.
Often therapy is combined with medical treatment to reach
better results.
While there are
no (known) effects depression could have on a person’s ability to exercise a
lot of the times the huge lack of motivation is the main hurdle. If this hurdle
can be overcome regular exercise can not only help to improve but even effectively
treat the symptoms of depression by increasing the levels of serotonin
(neurotransmitter that has been linked to depression if there are imbalances
present) and endorphins (known as the ‘feel-good hormone’). Additionally an
improve in energy levels, appetite and sleep patterns is common in exercising
people. Organizing regular times following a program can help a depressed
person to exercise regularly.
While there are
no limitations in what they can do for a depressed person it is important to
build a supportive environment for them to not worsen their low self-esteem and
feeling uselessness. Social support can help reduce the feeling of loneliness
as well as help distracting from their worries and negative thoughts. Some
depressed people even increase their self-esteem just by having an active part
in controlling their wellbeing.
To be able to help a depressed person
as much as possible it is important for both them and their trainer to stay in
contact with their doctor or psychologist or other health professional treating
the depression.
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