Depression

What is it?

Depression is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act. It can cause feelings of sadness and/or a loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed.

The difference between low mood and depression

Everyone feels low or down from time to time and that’s quite normal. We’ve all experienced situations in which we have felt upset, angry, worried or sad.

Feeling low is particularly common after a distressing event or major life change like the death of someone close, losing your job or a relationship breakdown.

Low moods should improve by:

• Talking problems through

• Getting the support of family or friends

• Taking positive action to resolve any problems or issues

• Joining a support group or network

• Counselling

• Getting enough sleep

Practising relaxation techniques and taking care of your physical health can also help.

Low moods tend to lift after a few days or weeks. If they continue and won’t go away it can be a sign of depression. Depression is when we feel low or negative for long periods of time. Someone experiencing depression may think too much about events in the past and feel hopeless about the future which can start to affect their daily life.

https://www.mindwell-leeds.org.uk/myself/exploring-your-mental-health/depression/

Signs of depression

• Feeling sad, upset or tearful

• Loss of interest in activities they used to enjoy 

• Feeling angry and irritable and may overreact to what others say

• Feeling very tired and lacking energy or being restless (can’t sit still or stay in one place)

• Problems sleeping or sleeping too much

• Poor memory and difficulty concentrating or taking in information

• Wanting to spend less time with family and friends and not go out as much

• Thinking negatively and expecting bad things to happen

• Feeling very guilty and ‘down on’ themselves

• Questioning themselves more and loss of self-esteem

• Loss of appetite (weight loss) or over-eating (weight gain)

• Neglecting basic needs (like keeping themselves and their home clean and tidy)

• Drinking more alcohol, smoking or taking drugs to try to feel better

• Difficulty with managing money which may include spending more

• Some people feel ‘numb’ or empty and unable to express sadness

Depression can affect people to different degrees: 

Mild depression: people experience less interest in doing routine tasks or things that they used to enjoy. Mild depression makes life much harder but does not stop people from continuing with their usual day-to-day life.

Moderate depression: people experience a real lack of interest and motivation – it can take a big effort to complete everyday things so that some tasks are not completed. Moderate depression can also affect self-confidence which makes it even harder to continue with day-to-day life. It can often affect basic needs such as sleep and appetite. People may experience thoughts that life is not worth living.

Severe depression: people can feel great upset, guilt and hopelessness, have much less energy and withdraw from the company of other people. This can impact on self-esteem and make it extremely difficult, or impossible, to continue with work and a normal social life. Thoughts of death or suicide are not unusual for people with severe depression and poor sleep and loss of appetite can lead to physical health problems.

https://www.mindwell-leeds.org.uk/myself/exploring-your-mental-health/depression/the-signs-of-depression/

Misconceptions

• People mistakenly believe that depression is mere sadness or even a weakness of character. But in fact, depression is a complex mental health disorder. It has social, psychological, and biological origins, and it can be treated in a variety of ways.

• People can believe that antidepressants are enough to treat depression. These drugs alter your brain chemistry. They can help address deep-rooted biological issues that may be contributing to your condition. But for many people, antidepressants alone aren’t enough. Your doctor may also recommend psychotherapy or talk therapy. Combining medications with talk therapy is a common treatment strategy.

• You can’t simply “snap out of it”. No one chooses to be depressed. In reality, depression isn’t a sign of self-pity, weakness or laziness. It’s a medical condition in which your brain chemistry, function and structure are negatively affected by environmental or biological factors. 

• You may have heard ‘what do you have to be sad about?’ before. Depression doesn’t just happen because of a sad situation. Depression can cause unexplained periods of hopelessness, sadness or lethargy. 

https://www.healthline.com/health/9-myths-depression

Ally's Story

Apps

Feeling Good: positive mindset - https://www.feelinggood.app/

Relax your body and mind with a series of audio tracks designed to help you build confidence, energy and a positive mindset.

Cove - http://www.cove-app.com/

Create music to capture your mood and express how you feel. Instead of words, create music to reflect emotions like joy, sadness, calm and anger.

Side by Side - https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/side-by-side-our-online-community/

Mind’s online community where you can feel at home talking about your mental health and connect with others who understand what you’re going through.

Togetherall - https://togetherall.com/en-gb/

A safe online community to support your mental health, 24/7.

Resources/self-help

NHS.uk - https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/feelings-symptoms-behaviours/feelings-and-symptoms/low-mood-sadness-depression/

Low mood, sadness and depression

Living Life to the Full - https://llttf.com/

Self-help resources and learning sessions that can help you feel better.

Northumberland Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust self-help leaflet - https://web.ntw.nhs.uk/selfhelp/

Explore the bookcase to find the depression leaflet

Depression UK - http://depressionuk.org/

A national self-help organisation that helps people cope with their depression.

CALM (Campaign against living miserably) - https://www.thecalmzone.net/ 

A charity which offers support to people in the UK who are down or have hit a wall for any reason, who need to talk or find information and support.

Age UK - https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/health-wellbeing/mind-body/mental-wellbeing/

Your mind matters

Blurt - https://www.blurtitout.org/about/

Website dedicated to helping people with depression.

Smiling Mind - https://www.smilingmind.com.au/home

Support Groups

NHS support groups for depression - https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/clinical-depression/support-groups/