Depression Is Not a Mood

Just thought I'd post this again . This blog is about depression, but as you can see by the symptoms, its difficult to actually sit down and write something. Would that I could. I'd pen lines of joy and happiness; lines of hope and a future. I don't know........would number 11 do any good?

When You're Depressed...
1. You feel sad or cry a lot and it doesn't go away.
2. You feel guilty for no real reason; you feel like you're no good; you've lost your confidence.
3. Life seems meaningless or like nothing good is ever going to happen again.
4. You have a negative attitude a lot of the time, or it seems like you have no feelings.
5. You don't feel like doing a lot of the things you used to like -- like music, sports, being with friends, going out -- and you want to be left alone most of the time.
6. It's hard to make up your mind. You forget lots of things, and it's hard to concentrate.
7. You get irritated often. Little things make you lose your temper; you overreact.
8. Your sleep pattern changes; you start sleeping a lot more or you have trouble falling asleep at night. Or you wake up really early most mornings and can't get back to sleep.
9. Your eating habits change; you've lost your appetite or you eat a lot more.
10. You feel restless and tired most of the time.
11. You think about death, or feel like you're dying, or have thoughts about committing suicide.

Visual Depression

I found this while surfing the web. I can't read the author's name but I find his/her work moving.

Symtoms of Depression

1. Agitation
2. Anxiety
3. Fatigue
4. Guilt
5. Impulsiveness
6. Irritability
7. Suicidal ideation
8. Panic
9. Paranoia
10. Pressured speech
11. Rage

Aside from
• Pressured Speech (rapid, loud and difficult-to-interrupt speech)
-- I don’t talk loud or fast (well maybe when Sherry and I are having
a ‘discussion’. During times such as these I find she understands
me better if I just ‘speak a little louder’) lol
• Paranoia
-- For some reason I’ve always just assumed everybody liked me – not
everybody, I guess, but that’s their problem
• Panic
-- Anxious? yes but panic? nah

I look at that list of eight horrible, terrible traits I know that was me. It’s hard to believe that was really me.
What I find puzzling is that most people in the ‘depression blog’ seem to be in pretty good spirits. Is it that blogging is therapeutic or are folks not really able to blog ‘unless’ their depression is under control?
I will continue to explore now that I can kind of (I hope forever) look at depression objectively.

Test For Depression

Here's a real short test that will confirm what you already know. It's linked to the National Institute of Mental Health which has some very good stuff

http://www.med.nyu.edu/psych/screens/depres.html

Symtoms of Depression

Depression is a serious medical illness that involves the brain. It's more than just a feeling of being "down in the dumps" or "blue" for a few days. If you are one of the more than 20 million people in the United States who have depression, the feelings do not go away. They persist and interfere with your everyday life.

To meet criteria for depression, five or more of these symptoms must be present for more than 2 weeks:

• Ongoing sad, anxious or empty feelings
• Feelings of hopelessness
• Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, or helplessness
• Feeling irritable or restless
• Loss of interest in activities or hobbies that were once
enjoyable, including sex
• Feeling tired all the time
• Difficulty concentrating, remembering details, or difficulty
making decisions
• Not able to go to sleep or stay asleep (insomnia); may wake in the
middle of the night, or sleep all the time
• Overeating or loss of appetite
• Thoughts of suicide or making suicide attempts
• Ongoing aches and pains, headaches, cramps or digestive problems that
do not go away.


This website contains a great tutorial that is well worth watching

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/depression/htm/_no_50_no_0.htm




http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/depression-easy-to-read.shtml
http://www.healthyplace.com/Communities/Depression/definition.asp
http://www.indepression.com/