Depression Signs & Symptoms. Good afternoon fellow bloggers. Today’s topic is both informational and personal. Have you ever felt like you are all alone with nobody there to back you up? Or maybe you feel extremely tired for no apparent reason. Do you cry often? Feel like there’s nothing to look forward to? I am talking about depression. Depression affects approximately 350 million people according to the World Health Organization. That is 6.9% of the population. Depression is more common than cancer and even Alzheimer’s. I hope you pay close attention to this blog because it may be something that can change your life forever.
Depression is a condition when one feels sad and down the majority of the time. Depression is clinical and must be diagnosed according to the required criteria listed in the DSM, Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The DSM is a book used by healthcare in order to diagnose mental disorders. The most recent DSM book is DSM-5. This book lists depression symptoms and descriptions of their patients in order to be able to give the correct diagnosis on mental disorders. According to the DSM 5 (296.xx: F32x. andF22.x) on clinical depression a person must present with at least 2 of the following symptoms for clinical depression during a 2 week period.
- “Depressed mood most of the day, nearly every day, as indicated by either subjective report (e.g., feels sad, empty, hopeless) or observation made by others (e.g., appears tearful). (Note: In children and adolescents, can be irritable mood.)
- Markedly diminished interest or pleasure in all, or almost all, activities most of the day, nearly every day (as indicated by either subjective account or observation.)
- Significant weight loss when not dieting or weight gain (e.g., a change of more than 5% of body weight in a month), or decrease or increase in appetite nearly every day. (Note: In children, consider failure to make expected weight gain.)
- Insomnia or hypersomnia nearly every day.
- Psychomotor agitation or retardation nearly every day (observable by others, not merely subjective feelings of restlessness or being slowed down).
- Fatigue or loss of energy nearly every day.
- Feelings of worthlessness or excessive or inappropriate guilt (which may be delusional) nearly every day (not merely self-reproach or guilt about being sick).
- Diminished ability to think or concentrate, or indecisiveness, nearly every day (either by subjective account or as observed by others).
- Recurrent thoughts of death (not just fear of dying), recurrent suicidal ideation without a specific plan, or a suicide attempt or a specific plan for committing suicide.”
I know many of us have experienced one or more of these feelings. Adults are not the only subjects diagnosed with clinical depression, children and adolescents are 
affected also. Nobody knows or understands depression better than I do. I was diagnosed as having major depression 21 years ago. The doctor believed mine would pass because it was diagnosed around the time I got divorced. Nonetheless, my primary care position started me out on medicines for depression. At that time, Prozac was very popular. I took Prozac for at least 10 years. My family demanded my medication to be changed because I engaged in behavior that I normally would not have.
Today, I still struggle with depression symptoms. There are days I don’t want to get out of the bed. I have no energy, and I have frequent headaches. My muscles are weak with no power. Still today, as many resources there are that exists for depression, I still feel like I am all alone and that nobody understands what I struggle with on a day to day basis. I believe our loved ones and close friends cannot understand where you are coming from until they have experienced depression first hand. I know that I cannot give in to my depression because I have a family who needs me. Therefore, I fight, and I fight hard everyday. It does make me feel less alone when I can rant about personal things in my life, like this blog.
Just know you are not alone. There are many resources out there that can help. You may even find it to be ventilating by expressing your personal experience and feelings of depression. So, come on bloggers, tell me your story and how depression makes you feel. This is completely anonymous, and believe you me there will be no judgement here.
Until my next blog,
Good day friends!!