What Are The Signs Of True Depression?
We all know about sorrow and depression. They are part of the human condition. Generally speaking, when we feel low, it is just a temporary situation. Life has a way of presenting new ideas and situations, and these perk us up and send us on our merry way. When this isn't the case and sorrow hangs on for an extended period of time, depression may be the culprit. Read on to find out what constitutes true depression and how you can deal with it.
If you feel sad and you don't know why, you may be depressed. It is normal to feel sad when something upsetting or disappointing happens, but if you are filled with a sense of dread and gloom for no particular reason, this is depression. This is also true if you began feeling sad because something bad happened but then did not recover from your sadness in a reasonable period of time. In this case, you may find that you burst into tears over insignificant setbacks and simply cannot find any joy in living.
If you have lost all interest in things that you once enjoyed, it is a sure sign of depression. When this happens, you may start out feeling sad and then feel sadder and sadder because you no longer enjoy the things that once cheered you along. This signals the beginning of depressive withdrawal. When you feel like this, it's a good idea to simply take yourself out of your house and into an area where you will encounter others. Interacting, smiling and moving around may help you begin to restore your equilibrium.
When you are depressed, your activities of daily living suffer. You may feel compelled to overeat, or you may feel too tired to eat. Sleep may become something to avoid or an activity for escape. When you awaken, you may feel less rested than when you went to bed. Regardless of what sleep changes occur, know that changes in your sleeping pattern signal depression. It's a good idea in these cases to make a conscious effort to restore normalcy to your sleep cycle. If you cannot get good rest, you will have a harder time recovering from your depression.
Depression often brings with it a lack of ability to concentrate and follow through on tasks. This can have life changing consequences if it affects your work. Additionally, it can cause your depression to spiral out of control if your inability to start what you finish causes your surroundings to deteriorate into a shambles. To deal with this, reduce the number of tasks you expect of yourself, but focus on persevering to complete those tasks that are necessary and maintain some semblance of order in your life.
Depression can bring about a sense of hopelessness, which is why it is very important to keep your goals and tasks small and manageable while you work your way through it. If you are hard on yourself and set yourself monumental tasks to accomplish, you are setting yourself up for failure. Take good care of yourself and be gentle on yourself. Do what you need to do to get to the other side of your sorrow. If it goes on for more than a month and/or you feel you might harm yourself or others, be sure to seek help.
When you recognize that you are depressed and are able to take a few small, proactive measures to work through it, you can often see yourself through to the other side. While this is one way of dealing with minor depression, it is important to remember that being able to accept help when you need it is an important aspect of all kinds of recovery. Follow the tips presented here and turn to the assistance of others as needed to successfully manage and conquer depression.
