Depression is a feeling of sadness. It is almost as if your world is coming to an end — like you are stuck inside a black tunnel without lights. Your heart is sinking so deep, the hopes and aspirations are slipping off your sight. All things you used to find enjoyable becomes boring and unworthy. The good news is unlike a number of psychological/psychiatric disorders, depression treatments exist. A consistent and well-planned depression therapy (hopefully a combination of meds and therapy) will often get a depressed individual to a much better place.
However, with depression, identifying the problem is imperative before even starting to talk about depression treatments and depression therapy. So how would you even know you are depressed or mildly depressed and not just sad? So to make things easier, the next time you are feeling down in the dumps, consider these five unexpected signs of depression as sort of a checklist as to whether or not you need to proceed to consult with a professional.
- You are super restless.
There are two different types of depression: there is a type of depression that makes you feel agitated, uptight, or anxious. You pace a lot, get very little sleep, and you are often fidgety. The other one makes you feel “numb” or restless. Simply put, you feel “blah.” For instance, if you are normally someone who wakes up in the morning to jog and goes through your unchanging morning routine, you just sort of stop caring about all of that when you are depressed. The things you love doing become boring. This is a symptom of depression that also keeps you distant from your friends. So it is good to watch out changes in sleep and energy patterns. Remember, often times, prevention is better than a cure. - Your body aches.
When you experiencing depression, it is not just your mind that feels pain, your body does as well. Physical symptoms of depression manifest visibly for many people. The physical signs can be headaches, chronic pain, and stomachaches. And that doesn’t mean it is all packed in your head. An Archives of General Psychiatry study in 2008 estimated that people with depression experience pain, and as their brain activity indicates more emotion, it becomes more difficult for them to handle the pain. Depression can make pain worse, and pain can make depression worse. As a result of this, your doctor can even find difficulties in finding the root of the problem. Studies have shown that about 40% of migraine sufferers also experience depression, and this is according to Anxiety and Depression Association of America. So be aware that when you start feeling some pain in your body, it may very well be a sign of depression. - You are suddenly a plodder.
You become a slowpoke abruptly. You take longer to do easy things than usual even without any distinguishable reason. When one is depressed at work, they usually don’t perform as well. Depression will literally slow down your system. Your body will become depressed along with your brain, and your psychomotor skills will also plod down. This might put you at higher risks of physical disabilities when you grow old. So if you notice you can’t seem to think as quickly as you used to, have difficulty completing tasks you used to have no troubling completing, or have trouble with follow-through, know that there is a chance you might be depressed. The sooner you seek help, the better. - You are having trouble making decisions.
Making up your mind becomes a problem when you are experiencing depression. The little things you normally don’t even think about for longer than a minute and decide on becomes too difficult to decide on. They become so weighty to decide on. This is related to the fact that people with depression are less likely to get pleasure from positive situations than feel bad after negative results. If you notice your decision-making process has slowed down a lot, be alert and aware that you may be experiencing a symptom of depression. - You abandon your personal hygiene.
Depression can make life worse for you. Even grooming your own hair becomes a hassle. For most healthy people, hygiene is second nature, but when they are depressed, it can even get difficult to get into the shower. Ignoring personal hygiene goes hand in hand with all the other symptoms of depression. Your grooming routine becomes your enemy. When you stop caring about how you look on the outside, this only reveals that you are having problems on the inside. Self-care becomes very integral when this happens.
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Posted on February 15, 2023