Understand Depression Warning Signs. It Is Estimated That 1 in 6 People Will Suffer A Major Depression In Their Lives

Depression is a debilitating illness, involving your whole body and mind. It affects your behaviour and the way you think about your life and will cause you to age dramatically as a vicious cycle of hormone imbalance, weight gain and medications, both prescribed and self medicated, kicks in.

When you feel really down and you can’t concentrate on anything other than how bad you feel, you are likely to be depressed. This is the time, when the first symptoms appear, to take action and seek counselling, be it with a psychologist, life coach or pastor from your church.

A life coach is not a counselor and cannot treat depression, but will be able to help you set goals for your future instead of floating like a rudderless boat in the sea of life.

Depression is not a sign of personal weakness or something that can be simply pushed aside. People with depression need help and it is not just a matter of pulling yourself together.

If a low mood lasts for more than 2 weeks or if your appetite, sleep or energy levels are affected or if you are feeling suicidal you need to act on the depression warning signs and seek help immediately.

Without treatment, symptoms can last for weeks, months, or years. With the appropriate treatment, however, most people can overcome depression.

Depression can affect you in a variety of ways and the following is a summary of depression warning signs:

Your Thoughts

•You are less interested in things

•You find it difficult to concentrate

•You have trouble making decisions

•You are less optimistic

•You are more pessimistic

•You are less motivated

•You have negative thoughts

•You have a lower self-esteem

•You have difficulty with short term memory

Your Feelings And Behaviour

•You worry more

•You feel life is not worth living

•You have less ability to love

•You feel unloved

•You handle anger differently

•You feel a sense of hopelessness or helplessness

•You have feelings of guilt that are not linked to anything in particular

•You feel sad for no reason at all

•You don’t enjoy activities that you use to find pleasurable

•You lack motivation

•You feel irritable

•You withdraw from social interaction

Your Body

•Your sleep patterns change

•Your appetite changes

•You gain or lose weight

•Your activity levels change

•You feel worse at a specific time of day

•Your interest in sex diminishes

•You have less energy than usual

Aging can involve a variety of stressful events and these can lead to depression for the following reasons.

•Difficulty transitioning from full time employment to retirement or semi retirement

•Being forced to retire because of disability or chronic health problems

•Caretaking responsibilities of a seriously ill spouse

•Mounting medical bills and declining purchasing power

•The loss of a loved one

•Lack of mobility due to physical illness

•Social isolation and loneliness due to not being able to drive

A medical professional diagnoses depression by looking at your symptoms and depression warning signs. Symptoms are reported by you, whereas depression signs are independent observations made by others. A symptom could be insomnia while a sign would be crying all the time for no apparent reason.

When diagnosing depression a doctor might take into account observations made by those close to you. For example a family member might have noticed that you do not take care of yourself and your surroundings in the same way that you used to.

Every symptom or warning sign of depression can affect you in varying degrees. These degrees are mild, moderate or severe but the personal suffering that you are going through would be the most important measure of the severity.

Depression is also more than the feeling of loss or grief you experience after losing someone you love. A depressed mood is a normal reaction to grief following the death of a loved one.

You might find it helpful to join a support group of like-minded people who are going through the same situation.

However if your grief does not go away within a few months, you may be depressed and you need to seek help. The excellent news is that about 80 percent of people diagnosed with clinical depression can be treated successfully with psychotherapy or a combination of psychotherapy and medication.

Any depression medication should be carefully monitored and phased out as soon as your medical professional feels that you are able to cope on your own. Taking these drugs for long periods could cause you to become addicted and reliant on them but you should never simply take yourself off the medication as this could have serious ramifications.

Even the most serious depression usually responds well to the right treatment but first, depression warning signs have to be recognized.

You should consider your diet and depression and take a depression test. You could also certainly try one of the many natural remedies for depression. These have no side effects and are often very helpful, especially if you are suffering a mild depression.