Feeling Tired And Having A Lack Of Energy
Some people with depression may find it hard to get up in the morning because they feel exhausted and run down. They may feel too fatigued to do everyday tasks, such as going to work and cooking meals. As a result, they may spend a lot of time at home resting or sleeping.
The fatigue of depression can make a person feel as though they are always tired, even if they are getting enough sleep. However, sleep disturbances are also a symptom of depression, and a person who experiences these can feel even more tired.
You Can Play A Role In Research By Joining A Clinical Trial
Clinical trials are research studies that look at new ways to prevent, detect, or treat diseases and conditions. The goal of clinical trials is to determine if a new test or treatment works and is safe. Although individuals may benefit from being part of a clinical trial, participants should be aware that the primary purpose of a clinical trial is to gain new scientific knowledge so that others may be better helped in the future.
In addition to volunteer research opportunities for the patient groups listed above, research opportunities for healthy volunteers are also available. Healthy volunteers play a critical role in our studies.
For more information about clinical research and how to find clinical trials being conducted around the country, visit NIMH’s clinical trials webpage.
What’s The Difference Between Low Mood And Depression
A general low mood can include:
However, a low mood will tend to lift after a few days or weeks.
Making some small changes in your life, such as resolving a difficult situation, talking about your problems or getting more sleep, can usually improve your mood.
A low mood that doesn’t go away can be a sign of depression. Symptoms of depression can include the following:
- low mood lasting two weeks or more
- not getting any enjoyment out of life
- feeling hopeless
- feeling tired or lacking energy
- not being able to concentrate on everyday things like reading the paper or watching television
- comfort eating or losing your appetite
- sleeping more than usual or being unable to sleep
Read more about the symptoms of depression.
Depression can also come on at specific points in your life, such as the winter months and after the birth of a child .
Recommended Reading: What It’s Like Having Depression And Anxiety
Could It Be Depression
While not everyone with depression will feel sad, unexplainable sadness you cant seem to shake is one of the primary signs of depression.
If your sadness does relate to depression, youll likely feel sad nearly all of the time almost every day, for most of each day, for a period of 2 weeks or longer. Sadness, in other words, seems to become a constant companion.
With depression, youll experience other symptoms, too. If several of the signs below accompany your sad or tearful mood, theres a good chance youre dealing with depression:
- feelings of anxiety or emptiness
- a sense of pessimism and hopelessness about the future
- appetite changes
Chronic sadness, especially when related to depression, might also prompt regular thoughts of death or suicide. Even if you dont have a plan to act on these thoughts, its always best to talk to someone you trust and get support right away .
You might begin to notice your feelings of sadness, along with any other symptoms you experience, follow a specific pattern. Depression can take different forms, and various underlying factors can have an impact on the way your symptoms show up.
A few things to look for:
Why I Am Feeling Low
Sometimes it can be hard to pinpoint whats bothering you. It might be a combination of things that are slightly worrying or draining. So it can be difficult to identify what exactly the problem is. Were more likely to feel low when stressed too.
There are some things likely to have a negative effect on our mood. See if any of these sound familiar:
- The impact of the pandemic
- Difficult events in your life, or worry about an upcoming one
- Family or friends are going through a hard time and youre worried about them
- Being bullied now or in the past
- Relationship problems or break ups
- Physical illness
- Using drugs and alcohol in an unhealthy way
- Going through hormonal changes
- A difficult event from the past is back on your mind.
Its understandable to feel down if any of these things are happening. When we dont have control over them, we can feel worse. But there are ways to help manage our mood.
You May Like: Can I Go To A Walk In Clinic For Depression
Introspect Yourself And Your Feelings Of Loneliness
No, dont hide under that blanket and hide away from your feelings of loneliness. Rather loosen up your shoulders, take threedeep breaths, and work on your feelings of loneliness. You can start by identifying the cause behind your feelings of loneliness.
It can vary widely from situation to person, just accept it. No matter how discomforting loneliness might feel, it will shrink if you draw attention to it and uncover your expectations.
What To Do When You Are Feeling Lonely Lost And Depressed
Everyone gets lonely sometimes, but its hard to cope when feelings of worthlessness and loneliness persist.
You may begin to lose hope for the future and find it hard to enjoy any aspect of life. Perhaps youve tried and failed to find solutions, and you worry that youll continue to feel this sad forever.
This is a horrible position to be in, but the good news is that it is resolvable.
Overcoming loneliness requires thought and effort, but it is certainly possible.
Whether you consistently feel depressed, youre trying to overcome the loneliness of being single or you dont quite know why you feel lost at the moment, there are things you can do to improve the situation.
This guide could help you understand yourself better and support you in figuring out what to do when you feel lonely.
Read Also: New Treatments For Bipolar Depression
What You Can Do To Feel Better
When youre depressed, it can feel like theres no light at the end of the tunnel. But there are many things you can do to lift and stabilize your mood. The key is to start with a few small goals and slowly build from there, trying to do a little more each day. Feeling better takes time, but you can get there by making positive choices for yourself.
Reach out to other people. Isolation fuels depression, so reach out to friends and loved ones, even if you feel like being alone or dont want to be a burden to others. The simple act of talking to someone face-to-face about how you feel can be an enormous help. The person you talk to doesnt have to be able to fix you. They just need to be a good listenersomeone wholl listen attentively without being distracted or judging you.
Get moving. When youre depressed, just getting out of bed can seem daunting, let alone exercising. But regular exercise can be as effective as antidepressant medication in countering the symptoms of depression. Take a short walk or put some music on and dance around. Start with small activities and build up from there.
Eat a mood boosting diet. Reduce your intake of foods that can adversely affect your mood, such as caffeine, alcohol, trans fats, sugar and refined carbs. And increase mood-enhancing nutrients such as Omega-3 fatty acids.
Access Professional Support For Loneliness And Depression
If you have found that you continue to feel lonely and depressed regardless of any changes that you make to your lifestyle, you may need a helping hand in order to start feeling better.
You may want to start out by visiting your GP and explaining the thoughts and feelings that you have been experiencing. They can provide you with advice, support and if necessary, access to a service such as Priory where you can receive specialist support and treatment.
You can also come directly to Priory Group, where you will be able to sit down with one of our consultant psychiatrists to determine the best form of treatment or therapy for you to undergo at one of our hospitals or wellbeing centres. The mental health support and treatment that we are able to provide includes weekly therapy sessions, day or half-day sessions at one of our day facilities or residential stays, if deemed necessary.
Don’t Miss: I M Struggling With Depression
Suicidal Thoughts And Behaviors
Strong signs of suicidality include talking about wanting to die, making plans, or attempting to take ones own life. Warning signs of suicidal intention include:
- Acquiring the means to commit suicide
- Changes in eating or sleeping habits
- Engaging in risky or self-destructive behavior
- Extreme agitation or anxiety
- Getting one’s affairs in order
- Increased use of substances such as drugs and alcohol
- Intense changes in mood/mood swings
- Saying goodbye to friends and family as though for the last time
- Feeling trapped or hopeless in ones situation
- Talking a lot about death, dying, and violence
- Talking about suicide or wishing that one hadn’t been born
- Withdrawal from friends or family
Take Part In Meaningful Activities
When people feel low, they sometimes dont feel like doing their usual activities. You might also find that you can’t do all the activities you used to do while you’re recovering from coronavirus.
Try to think about small, achievable activities you can complete every day that will give you a sense of enjoyment and accomplishment.
You May Like: Bible Verses To Overcome Depression
Do Something You Enjoy
Your favorite hobbies may seem less enjoyable when you feel sad or down, but giving them a try anyway can sometimes offer mood-boosting benefits.
If youre struggling to muster up any energy, try low-key activities instead of ones that you feel exhausted just thinking about.
A few possibilities:
- cuddling your pet
New Specifiers For Depression In Dsm
The latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders , the DSM-5, added two specifiers to further classify diagnoses:
- With Mixed Features This specifier allows for the presence of manic symptoms as part of the depression diagnosis in patients who do not meet the full criteria for a manic episode.
- With Anxious Distress The presence of anxiety in patients may affect prognosis, treatment options, and the patients response to them. Clinicians will need to assess whether or not the individual experiencing depression also presents with anxious distress.
Also Check: Pregnant And Depressed About Relationship
What Is Anxiety
Anxiety is a feeling of worry or fear that everyone experiences from time to time. Symptoms of anxiety include:
- feeling restless or ‘on edge’
These symptoms are completely normal but can affect your daily life. If you find yourself worrying all or most of the time, and you’re experiencing physical symptoms such as a fast heartbeat, shaking or sweating, make an appointment with the GP. You can talk to your doctor or nurse at any time, in complete confidence. They won’t judge you they’re there to listen and help you get back on track.
It’s not uncommon to feel low and worried at the same time. Doctors are used to seeing people who feel depressed and anxious and know how to help.
Dont brush how you feel under the carpet and hope it will sort itself out symptoms are likely to get worse if you dont take action. Having depression or anxiety is like a physical health condition, and it can be successfully treated.
What You Can Do
If the symptoms of morning depression sound familiar to you, you can take steps to get help.
Get the right diagnosis. Talk to your doctor or health care provider to understand if you may have something more than temporary mood swings.
Take care of your overall health. Try to eat well, stay active, and manage any long-term conditions such as diabetes and heart disease. Physical health plays a role in your mental health.
Ask for a medication checkup. Your doctor or pharmacist can review if your drugs or drug interactions may be behind your morning depression.
Show Sources
Don’t Miss: Can Too Much Antidepressant Cause Depression
What If My Symptoms Dont Improve
If youre not responding to treatment, you may live with treatment resistant depression. This is when your symptoms have not improved after at least 2 standard treatments. This can also be known as treatment-refractory depression.
There is currently no official criteria used to diagnose treatment resistant depression.
What treatment is available for treatment-resistant depression?There are treatment options for treatment resistant depression. Even if antidepressants have not worked already for you, your doctor may suggest a different antidepressant from a different class.
The new antidepressant you are offered will depend on the first antidepressant you were given.
Sometimes your doctor can prescribe a second type of medication to go with your antidepressant. This can sometimes help the antidepressant work better than it does by itself.
Where antidepressants have not worked, your doctor may suggest talking therapies, ECT or brain stimulation treatments. See the previous section for more information on these.
What is an implanted vagus nerve stimulator, and how is it used in treatment resistant depression?If you live with treatment resistant depression, and youve not responded to other treatments, you may be able ask for an implanted vagus nerve stimulator.
Please speak to your doctor if youre interested in this treatment and for more information. You may be able to get this treatment funded through an Individual Funding Request.
- NHS – Your Rights by clicking here.
Get Advice From The Verywell Mind Podcast
Hosted by Editor-in-Chief and therapist Amy Morin, LCSW, this episode of The Verywell Mind Podcast shares what it means to have ‘existential depression,’ featuring Melissa & Doug’s co-founder Melissa Bernstein.
Follow Now: Apple Podcasts / Spotify /
Symptoms of depression can occur along a spectrum both in duration and severity. Mild depression can occur during periods of stress but resolve with time and may not require any specific treatment. Moderate to severe depression causes chronic symptoms and usually requires at least one form of treatment, if not multiple treatments.
Generally speaking, severe depression requires some type of treatment to find some relief. Additionally, depression severity can change over time, growing increasingly worse or alternating between mild and severe during the same depressive episode.
If someone has severe depression, they may self-harm, have suicidal thoughts, or be at risk for attempting suicide. If you are severely depressed, help is available to help you manage your symptoms and ensure your safety and well-being.
Don’t Miss: Does Depression Medicine Help With Anxiety
Get Curious Ask Questions Find Answers
Do you know what is unlimited and never-ending in life? Knowledge! So, when you feel lonely, set your thoughts free to wander in different directions, get curious about things around you, ask yourself questions , and get engaged in finding answers. This will not keep your lonely feelings at bay but will also help you expand your knowledge bubble.
Why Does Pmdd Happen
While the exact reason for PMDD is yet to be discovered, studies have pointed to certain potential causes.
A recent research conducted by the National Institute of Health found that the cells from women suffering from PMDD react differently to fluctuations in reproductive hormone levels than in women without PMDD.
This heightened sensitivity affects the brains chemical and neurological pathways that regulate the mood and feeling of well-being, possibly leading to depression around period.
Read Also: Is It Possible To Get Rid Of Depression
Overeating And Weight Gain
Conversely, some people with depression may eat more than usual. For some individuals, food can be a comfort mechanism for negative feelings and a way to deal with boredom or loneliness.
Depression can make it difficult for people to feel motivated to get outside or exercise. Combined with an increase in food intake, this can cause weight gain.
Accept It As A Feeling
Dont let yourself fall into the trap of believing that loneliness is forever. You might feel lonely today, this week, or even this month, but it doesnt mean you are alone or that you have no one who cares for you.
Like all feelings, loneliness is impermanent and it does not define who you are.
Accept that you feel lonely, then focus on moving forward.
You May Like: Most Common Drugs To Treat Depression
Ways You Can Look After Yourself
If youre depressed, you can take steps to lift your mood and help your recovery. These steps can help if youve been depressed in the past and want to stay well.
- Talk about how youre feeling. Talking to someone you trust, or finding peer support, can help you feel better and less alone.
- Eat well. A healthy diet can lift your mood and maintain your mental health.
- Stay physically active. Exercise may feel like the last thing you want to do, but it can ease the symptoms of depression. Research suggests it may be as effective as antidepressants in helping you feel better.
- Spend time in nature. Research shows that being in nature can make us feel happier, feel our lives are more worthwhile, and reduce our levels of depression.
- Avoid cigarettes and alcohol. They may feel like theyre helping at first, but they make things worse in the long run.
- Consider mindfulness, a technique you can learn to fully engage in the present. Studies show it can help reduce the symptoms of depression.
- Try talking therapy to stay well. NICE guidelines recommend CBT or mindfulness-based cognitive therapy if youve been depressed in the past.
References: