What To Do If I Have Severe Depression

When To Seek Professional Help

Any level of depression should be taken seriously and the faster you address the symptoms, the less likely you are to develop a more severe type of depression. Seeking professional help is a sign of bravery and self-respect because it shows that you are dedicated to caring for your mind and body. A therapist can offer more clinical advice and guide you through treatment with approaches that are more tailored to your specific situation and needs. However, if you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, tell someone you trust and seek assistance immediately.

Everyone experiences low points in their life and their mental health, but depression is a treatable mental illness and you can recover. Whether you or a loved one is feeling depressed, every persons experience with mental illness is different but help is available. Visit our Key Services page to learn more about the treatment methods we offer and to explore our list of additional health and wellness classes to support your overall mental health.

If you are in a crisis, please call us at 303-425-0300 or by calling the crisis line at 844-493-8255. The 24/7 crisis walk-in center and withdrawal management program is open at 4643 Wadsworth Blvd, Wheat Ridge, CO 80033.

Check out our other posts!

Symptoms May Vary Based On Vaccination Status

Experts say that Omicron produces milder symptoms than previous variantsif youre vaccinated.

Every patient Ive seen with Covid thats had a 3rd booster dose has had mild symptoms. By mild I mean mostly sore throat. Lots of sore throat. Also some fatigue, maybe some muscle pain. No difficulty breathing. No shortness of breath. All a little uncomfortable, but fine,tweeted New York City emergency room physician Craig Spencer recently.

And almost every single patient that Ive taken care of that needed to be admitted for Covid has been unvaccinated, he added. Every one with profound shortness of breath. Every one whose oxygen dropped when they walked. Every one needing oxygen to breathe regularly.

What Are Risk Factors Of Depression

There are many things that may be risk factors of depression. For some people, changes in the brain can affect mood and result in depression. Others may experience depression after a major life event, like a medical diagnosis or a loved ones death. Sometimes, those under a lot of stress especially people who care for loved ones with a serious illness or disability can feel depressed. Others may become depressed for no clear reason.

Research has shown that these factors are related to the risk of depression, but do not necessarily cause depression:

• Medical conditions, such as stroke or cancer
• Genes people who have a family history of depression may be at higher risk
• Functional limitations that make engaging in activities of daily living difficult
• Addiction and/or alcoholism included in Substance-Induced Depressive Disorder

Recommended Reading: How To Talk About Your Depression

Signs Of An Episode Of Major Depression

Anyone with PDD is also at risk of experiencing episodes of major depression. In fact, most people with PDD will have one such episode at least once in their lives. For some people with PDD it may feel as if the persistent, low-level depression may take a turn into severe depression at any time. While the two conditions are similar and may occur in the same person, there are some significant differences.

Two important differences are duration and severity. PDD persists over a long period of time, two years or more, while major depression occurs in episodes that are shorter-lived but still at least two weeks long. The symptoms are similar but more severe during an episode of major depression.

Also significant is the distinction between functioning. Someone with PDD functions at a typical level, but during an episode of major depression that functioning will slide. They may begin to perform more poorly at school or work, be unable to complete certain responsibilities, skip activities they normally participate in, become socially withdrawn, or even let self-care and personal hygiene slide.

Begin Your Recovery Journey.

You May Like: How To Deal With A Depressed Spouse

How Is Depression Syndrome Treated

Depression can be serious, but its also treatable. Treatment for depression includes:

• Self-help: Regular exercise, getting enough sleep, and spending time with people you care about can improve depression symptoms.
• Counseling: Counseling or psychotherapy is talking with a mental health professional. Your counselor helps you address your problems and develop coping skills. Sometimes brief therapy is all you need. Other people continue therapy longer.
• Alternative medicine: People with mild depression or ongoing symptoms can improve their well-being with complementary therapy. Therapy may include massage, acupuncture, hypnosis and biofeedback.
• Medication: Prescription medicine called antidepressants can help change brain chemistry that causes depression. Antidepressants can take a few weeks to have an effect. Some antidepressants have side effects, which often improve with time. If they dont, talk to your provider. A different medications may work better for you.
• Brain stimulation therapy: Brain stimulation therapy can help people who have severe depression or depression with psychosis. Types of brain stimulation therapy include electroconvulsive therapy , transcranial magnetic stimulation and vagus nerve stimulation .

Don’t Miss: Does Postpartum Depression Get Worse With Each Pregnancy

What Are The Symptoms Of Depression

While each person may experience symptoms differently, these are the most common symptoms of depression:

• Lasting sad, anxious, or empty mood

• Loss of interest in almost all activities

• Appetite and weight changes

• Changes in sleep patterns, such as inability to sleep or sleeping too much

• Slowing of physical activity, speech, and thinking OR agitation, increased restlessness, and irritability

• Ongoing feelings of worthlessness and/or feelings of undue guilt

• Trouble concentrating or making decisions

• Repeating thoughts of death or suicide, wishing to die, or attempting suicide

If you have 5 or more of these symptoms for at least 2 weeks, you may be diagnosed with depression. These feelings are a noticeable change from whats normal for you.

The symptoms of depression may look like other mental health conditions. Always see a healthcare provider for a diagnosis.

Mixed Anxiety & Depression Explained

Depression and anxiety have similar causes and some people can experience symptoms of both conditions at the same time. If youve been experiencing both low mood and persistent worry, tension, and unease, click below to learn more about the relationship between anxiety and depression.

How To Deal With Depression

There are a range of ways to deal with depression, and often they are best used in conjunction with each other. The primary medical options are Cognitive Behavioural Therapy , antidepressant medication, and in some severe cases, Electroconvulsive Therapy .

Education and coping strategies are also important when learning to manage your depression.

ECT is an effective form of treatment for depression, especially if:

• There are medical contraindications to medication.
• There is a need for rapid improvement because of suicidal intent or refusal to eat.
• The person has experienced treatment failure following CBT, several medications, or combined medication and CBT treatment trials.
• The person has had a previous positive response to ECT.
• Somatic symptoms are prominent.

Read Also: Can Weight Loss Pills Cause Depression

Also Check: Self Help Strategies For Depression

Whats The Difference Between Sadness And Depression

Whether youve lost a loved one, moved to a new place, or missed out on a job opportunity, there are plenty of stressful and upsetting events that can get you down. However, the difference between sadness and depression is that sadness usually passes with a little time, while depression is a mood disorder that can appear without any specific cause and last for two weeks or more.

Depression impacts almost every part of your life, interfering with how you think, feel, and go about your daily activities like sleeping, working, and socializing. Some common symptoms of depression include:

• Feeling empty
• Difficulty sleeping or sleeping more than normal
• Changes in appetite or weight
• Feelings of hopelessness
• Loss of interest in hobbies or activities
• Irritability or restlessness
• Aches and pains without clear physical causes
• Thoughts of death or suicide

To be diagnosed with depression, these symptoms must be present nearly all day, every day for at least two weeks.

Key Points About Depression

• Depression is a serious mood disorder that affects your whole body including your mood and thoughts.

• Its caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. Some types of depression seem to run in families.

• Depression causes ongoing, extreme feelings of sadness, helplessness, hopeless, and irritability. These feelings are usually a noticeable change from whats normal for you, and they last for more than two weeks.

• Depression may be diagnosed after a careful psychiatric exam and medical history done by a mental health professional.

• Depression is most often treated with medicine or therapy, or a combination of both.

You May Like: How To Get A Therapy Cat For Depression

Seeking Help For Depression

Get help if you’re still feeling down or depressed after a couple of weeks.

Treatments for depression include psychological therapies and antidepressants.

You can refer yourself for psychological therapies like cognitive behavioural therapy or counselling on the NHS. You don’t need a referral from your GP.

You can talk it through with your GP first if you prefer. Your GP can also tell you about antidepressants.

If you start to feel that your life isn’t worth living or about harming yourself, get help straight away.

You can:

• contact Samaritans on 116 123 for 24-hour confidential, non-judgemental emotional support

Assess The Parts Instead Of Generalizing The Whole

Depression can tinge recollections with difficult emotions. You may find yourself focusing on things that are unhelpful or perceived as difficult.

Try to stop this overgeneralization. Push yourself to recognize the good. If it helps, write down what was meaningful about the event or day. You can track what you achieved that day, and which activities were enjoyable.

Seeing the weight youre giving to one thing may help you direct your thoughts away from the whole and to the individual pieces that were helpful.

You May Like: Free Online Help For Depression

Coping With Severe Anxiety

Anxiety can be very disruptive. Even with professional treatment, it’s important to find ways to cope and manage anxiety symptoms at home. There are many ways to keep anxiety in check, including:

• Getting enough regular exercise
• Getting enough sleep every night
• Doing relaxation exercises, including deep breathing, mindfulness exercises, and meditation
• Eating healthy, nutritious, and regular meals
• Limiting caffeine intake
• Finding helpful social supports

A good routine can help to support the work that happens in therapy and keep severe anxiety symptoms under control.

Seeing A Doctor About Depression

Big changes in your life, like bereavement, losing a job, or even having a baby, can cause symptoms of depression. You’re also more likely to experience depression if you have a family history of depression. However, it’s also possible to become depressed without there being an obvious reason.

You can learn more about depression causes here.

Read Also: Is It Depression Or Anxiety Test

Identifying Changes In Behavior

Or Spend Time With Loved Ones

Depression can tempt you to isolate yourself and withdraw from people you love and trust, but face-to-face time can help wash away those tendencies.

If youre unable to spend time together in person, phone calls or video chats can also be helpful.

Try to remind yourself these people care about you. Resist the temptation to feel like youre a burden. You need the interaction and they likely do, too.

Research has shown that keeping a journal can be a beneficial add-on method for managing mental health conditions.

Writing down your thoughts can help you express what youre feeling more clearly. It can also help you keep track of what symptoms youre having each day and identify what causes them.

You can make a goal to write for a few minutes each day or week. Most importantly, what you want to write about is completely up to you.

When you do the same thing day after day, you use the same parts of your brain.

Research shows doing new things can feel rewarding improve your overall well-being and strengthen your social relationships.

To reap these benefits, consider trying a new sport, taking a creative class, or learning a new cooking technique.

Recommended Reading: How To Fix Depression Without Therapy

Symptoms And Causes Of Depression

Symptoms of depression can be very different from person to person. However, as a general rule, if you are depressed you feel hopeless, sad and lacking interest in things that used to make you feel happy.

Depression symptoms are bad enough to interfere with work, social life and family life, and can persist for weeks or months.

Doctors describe depression in one of three ways, depending on how serious it is:

• mild depression it has some impact on daily life
• moderate depression it has a significant impact on your daily life
• severe depression this makes it nearly impossible to get through your life day to day

A few people with severe depression may have symptoms of psychotic depression.

Below is a list of depression symptoms it’s unlikely that one person would have all of them.

Psychological Treatments For Depression

Psychological treatments have been found to be an effective way to treat depression. They can help you change your thinking patterns and improve your coping skills so you’re better equipped to deal with life’s stresses and conflicts.

As well as supporting your recovery, psychological therapies can help you stay well by identifying and changing unhelpful thoughts and behaviour.

There are several different types of psychological treatments including:

• cognitive behaviour therapy
• behaviour therapy
• mindfulness-based cognitive therapy .

CBT is one of the most commonly used psychological therapies. It helps people with depression to monitor and change negative patterns of thinking and improve their coping skills so they are better equipped to deal with lifes stresses and conflicts.

You May Like: Are Cashews Good For Depression

Remember That Depression Is An Illness

Shifting my perspective has helped me to react with less fear when my symptoms present themselves. They make more sense within the context of depression as a legitimate medical condition.

For a long time, I didnt think of depression as an illness. It felt more like a personal defect that I needed to try to get over. Looking back, I can see that this perspective made the symptoms of my depression feel even more overwhelming. I didnt view my feelings or experiences as symptoms of an illness. Sadness, guilt, and isolation loomed large, and my panicked reaction magnified their effects.

Through a lot of reading and conversation, I have come to accept that depression is, in fact, an illness. And for me, one that needs to be treated with both medication and therapy. Shifting my perspective has helped me to react with less fear when my symptoms present themselves. They make more sense within the context of depression as a legitimate medical condition.

I still feel sad, afraid, and lonely, but I am able to recognize those feelings as connected to my illness and as symptoms that I can respond to with self-care.

How Can I Help A Loved One Who Is Depressed

Its important to remember that a person with depression cannot simply “snap out of it.” It is also important to know that he may not recognize his symptoms and may not want to get professional treatment.

If you think someone has depression, you can support him by helping him find a doctor or mental health professional and then helping him make an appointment. Even men who have trouble recognizing that they are depressed may agree to seek help for physical symptoms, such as feeling tired or run down. They may be willing to talk with their regular health professional about a new difficulty they are having at work or losing interest in doing things they usually enjoy. Talking with a primary care provider may be a good first step toward learning about and treating possible depression.

Read Also: Depressed Person Sleeping All Day

Can Depression Be Prevented

Many people wonder if depression can be prevented and how they may be able to lower their risk of depression. Although most cases of depression cannot be prevented, healthy lifestyle changes can have long-term benefits to your mental health.

Here are a few steps you can take:

• Be physically active and eat a healthy, balanced diet. This may help avoid illnesses that can bring on disability or depression. Some diets including the low-sodium DASH diet have been shown to reduce risk of depression.