Are You Depressed? Ten Symptoms That Say Yes

It is true that depression does not discriminate. It affects people of all races and all ages and does not care if its target is male or female. If you are concerned that depression has crept into your life, you should be aware of some of the illnesses' symptoms so that you can seek appropriate care as soon as possible.

To begin with, it is imperative that you recognize the difference between merely being bummed out and being depressed. Everyone gets a little sad at times, but this sadness usually ends with a few hours or a couple of days. Depression usually lasts much longer, and it can become so all-consuming that it can severely disrupt a person's daily life.

While depression affects people in different ways, ten of the most commonly observed symptoms are listed below.

• Restlessness. People who suffer from depression are often anxious, restless, and irritable for no apparent reason. Even they themselves are often shocked by this unexplained behavior.

• Constant Sadness. Even when life should be considered perfect, people who suffer from depression still feel sad and unhappy. The fact they don't understand their own misery makes them even more frustrated.

• Hopelessness. Depressed persons only hear the thunder and see the rain. They are unable to see the rainbow that comes afterwards even when it's right in front of their faces.

• Lack of Interest in Favorites. When you are depressed, things which used to be enjoyable seem to lack their luster. Basically, everything sucks.

• Dislike of Oneself. Depressed people tend to feel worthless. They don't feel as though anything they do matters, and they doubt their ability to perform even the simplest tasks.

• Exhaustion. Individuals who constantly battle depression are generally exhausted. They rarely have the energy to do much of anything besides side around or rest in bed.

• Difficulty Focusing. Depression tends to interrupt a person's ability to concentrate and focus. They may forget even the smallest of details and have trouble processing the tiniest tasks.

• Sleeping Issues. Some depressed people sleep constantly, and some depressed people rarely sleep at all. It depends on the person. Either way, when it comes to sleeping, doing too much or not enough is a bad thing.

• Weight Gain or Weight Loss. The same fact applies to the subject of appetite. Overeating is common among depressed persons but so is not eating enough. In this case, depression may even manifest itself into an eating disorder.

• Suicidal Thoughts. People who suffer from severe depression may have suicidal thoughts and often concoct "what if" scenarios.

If any of these symptoms seem a little too familiar, consult your physician or another health professional as soon as possible. You do not have to diagnose yourself, and you do not have to be ashamed. You are not alone; nearly 19 million Americans suffer from depression.

To connect with others who suffer from depression or a type of addiction, check out the social network, Sober Neighbors at http://www.soberneighbors.com/

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What Is The Difference Between Psychotic Depression and Schizophrenia?

Psychotic depression and schizophrenia can be easily confused with each other, but they are not the same. By definition, psychotic depression is a major depressive disorder that presents with hallucinations and delusions, while schizophrenia is a mental illness whereby the individual has difficulty thinking logically, identifying between what's real and what's imagined, and to express feelings appropriately. It's possible for psychotic depression to turn into schizophrenia just as it is possible for schizophrenia to cause psychotic depression.

Psychotic Depression vs Schizophrenia: Differentiating the Symptoms

Individuals with psychotic depression are usually agitated and anxious with some degree of intellectual impairment and physical immobility. They have sleeping problems, as well, excessive preoccupation with their health (hypochondriasis), hallucinations and delusions.

Schizophrenics, on the other hand, are hostile and suspicious. When you look at them you will find their gaze devoid of any expression. Social withdrawal is very likely, and along with it the reduced need or lack of desire to take care of one's self. Personal hygiene suffers, and so do personal and social relationships. Individuals diagnosed with this mental disorder are irrational, forgetful, and defensive to criticisms. Insomnia and depression are problems often met by schizophrenics.

Later Signs and Symptoms of Schizophrenia

As schizophrenia progress, delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech and behavior become more apparent.

Delusions

It's typical of schizophrenics to be delusional. Most of them experience one or several of the following types of delusion:

· Delusions of persecution. Schizophrenics with delusions of persecution believe that someone is out there to persecute him/her.

· Delusions of grandeur. This is a strange believe that one is a VIP or who possesses super powers.

· Delusions of control. Schizophrenics believe that how they think or what they do are influenced by an outside force.

Hallucinations

Also common to schizophrenics are hallucinations. Hallucinations are signs and sounds that are believed to be real but which actually exist nowhere else but in the mind of the patient.

Disorganized Speech and Behavior

Schizophrenics have difficulty focusing. They can shift from topic to topic, which when you put them all together, no longer makes any sense. If you ask them questions, they will answer, but inappropriately. They keep repeating words and phrases over and over again. Sometimes they create their own words that nobody else understands.

Psychotic Depression and Schizophrenia: Understanding the Causes

There are a number of factors that can lead to psychotic depression, among them:

· Genetics.

· Neurotransmitter problems

· Hormonal imbalances

· Inability to cope with stresses and tragedies.

· Personality problems.

With schizophrenia, the following factors are said to trigger its occurrence:

· Genetics. If someone in your immediate family has the disorder, there's a 10% chance that you will have it, too. If both your parents have been diagnosed with the disorder, there's a 40% chance of you developing it as well.

· Neurotransmitter problems of imbalances in the brain chemicals.

· Structural abnormalities in the brain.

· Complications experienced during pregnancy or birth.

· Substance abuse. Marijuana consumption can cause schizophrenia.

Treatment Options For Psychotic Depression and Schizophrenia

Psychotic Depression is managed with a combination of antidepressants and antipsychotic drugs (using only antidepressants is found to be not very effective in many patients), and electroconvulsive therapy for patients found to have significant retardation of the psychomotor. The use of drugs needs to be strictly monitored, though, while electroconvulsive therapy has to be done in a hospital facility by a trained specialist.

To treat schizophrenia, antipsychotic drugs will be prescribed, but with extreme caution considering the many side effects they come with. The patient will also be advised to undergo psychosocial treatments, learn disease management skills and coping skills to deal with everyday stresses. If substance abuse is what triggered the disorder, integrating treatment for substance abuse will be employed.

You can be happy! Stop suffering from depression and anxiety. There are natural vitamins for depression and natural fish oils at BestFishOill.com.

Copyright © Alexa L. Ryan

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How to Quickly Overcome Depression

Does the sound of a bell make you salivate? It would have if you were Pavlov's dog. Ivan Pavlov, the world renowned psychologist conducted a break through study on human behavior where he simply rang a bell and fed a dog some food.

He did this over and over again and then one day suddenly rang the bell but didn't present the poor pup with any food. What did the dog do when he heard the ringing bell? He salivated.

Why? Because he was conditioned too. It's a response he had that he wasn't aware of or had any control over. You see, habits and behaviors can simply go on auto-pilot. It's the way we're designed. If you see someone at work who you have never gotten along with your pleasant day just might be ruined. It's hard to fight this stimulus-response behavior because repeated behavior actually effects the human brain at the neurological level. In other words, a well formed habit has actually changed the circuitry of the brain!

Ironically - we can use this auto-pilot behavior to help us to snap out of a bad mood. Because one of the things we're conditioned to do (no matter what) is provide answers to questions. Even when we lie about the answer a part of our brain is answering that question honestly.

Perhaps the most effective way to change this stimulus response is through hypnosis and brain wave entrainment however with this article we're simply going to focus on the power of questions. You can use the power of questions to improve our moods. If it sounds unbelievable then use yourself as a guinea pig after reading this article.

The next time you're in a bad mood ask yourself a series of questions - be firm with yourself when you do this. You don't have to do it out (although if you're in a private place this will help). I'll give you a few examples - your date shows up late for dinner and your feelings are hurt. Just ask yourself a series of questions:

"What else could this mean?""How does this experience benefit me?""What will I do differently next time?""Will this matter to me next week? Or next month?""Can I let someone else control my emotions so easily?""Who is ultimately responsible for my happiness?"

In my own experience the first question listed is by far the most powerful. I repeat "What else could this mean?" during difficult situations and if I do it forcefully enough my brain starts putting out answers that help to lift my mood.

How can this change our mood and what does this have to do with the story about Pavlov's Dog? We are conditioned through stimulus-response to answer these questions. No matter how hard you try - your brain will answer them!

The next thing we can do to get our mood back is to look at our posture and our own body language. Take a long look in the mirror and grin from ear to ear for at least 5 minutes, with your feet firmly planted, your back arched and your face tilted upwards to the sky. Our bodies are conditioned to release endorphins & serotonin into our system when we adopt this posture!

Sanjay Kumar is the creator of the Hypnotic Laws a comprehensive collection of life changing brain wave entrainment and hypnotherapy albums. Click here to download a hypnotherapy audio and Law of Attraction Guide (a $44 value yours for free).

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