Signs of depression – do you have any?

Before you find out if you have any signs and symptoms of depression, you should be aware of what a depressive disorder is.

Depressive disorder is an illness that affects your mood, thoughts and eventually your body. That includes the way you feel about yourself, the way you think about your surroundings and your behavior in your daily life, such as the way you eat and sleep.

You should not confuse the depressive disorder with a temporary passing blue mood, because it’s not. Although it may seem like a personal weakness, the depressive disorder is not a condition that can be willed or wished away by the patient. What more, it’s beyond control for people with such an illness to “pull themselves together” and get better. What they really need is appropriate depression treatment.

Signs and symptoms of depression

Of course not everyone who is depressed experiences all of these depression symptoms. Usually some people experience just a few of the depression symptoms, and others – have more or different signs of depression. In general the symptoms and signs of depression and especially their severity depend on the individuals and may vary over time.

Symptoms of depression

• Persistent sad, anxious, or “empty” mood
• Feelings of hopelessness, pessimism
• Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, helplessness
• Loss of interest or pleasure in hobbies and activities that were once enjoyed, including sex
• Decreased energy, fatigue, being “slowed down”
• Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions
• Insomnia, early-morning awakening, or oversleeping
• Appetite and/or weight loss or overeating and weight gain
• Thoughts of death or suicide; suicide attempts
• Restlessness, irritability
• Persistent physical symptoms that do not respond to treatment, such as headaches, digestive disorders, and chronic pain

If you wonder how depression disorder and its signs and symptoms are related to weight loss, then I have one more symptom of depression for you – the constant overeating with sweets, such as ice-cream and chocolate, usually late at night.

If you experience any of these depression symptoms, then you should consult a qualified specialist or health practitioner in order to diagnose you with depression disorder. However, how they reach this diagnosis gives an incredibly important insight into how to treat depression.

For more detailed information on signs and symptoms of depression you can refer to:

National Institute of Mental Health. Depression. Bethesda (MD): National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, US Department of Health and Human Services; 2000 [reprinted 2002; cited 2004 January 26]. (NIH Publication Number: NIH 02-3561). http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/depression.cfm