Depression
This Section Includes:
Depression Introduction
Neuroplasticity and Depression
Progress and Setbacks
Fighting Back Against Depressive Thoughts
Getting Help
Depression Introduction
We all experience sad moods at times, but depression is different. It lasts a lot longer, and it can sap your energy, reduce your enthusiasm for life, and isolate you from people and activities that might be able to help. Although depression can lead to hopelessness, help is more available—and effective—than ever.
Depression is a mental condition characterized by persistent sadness, low self-esteem, loss of interest in activities, and problems with sleeping and concentration. Symptoms can range from mild to severe and can last for short periods of time (episodes) or be persistent and recurrent.
Causes of depression can include genetic factors, biochemical imbalances, stressful life events, medications, and medical conditions. Treatment options include medication, lifestyle changes, and various types of therapy.
Emotions are short-term reactions and refer to how people feel at a given time. Chronic mood states like depression are persistent states of mental arousal.
Psychologists have identified several negative mood states that are common.
Anxiety or Tension
Anger or Hostility
Vigor or Activity,
Fatigue or Inertia
Depression or Dejection
Confusion or Bewilderment
These mood states are conditions of arousal of the brain or nervous system in contrast to states of contentment, peace, or calm.
Depression may not sound like a state of arousal, but it can be considered highly aroused negative emotions that sap positive energy. It is generally defined as a period of two weeks or more during which the person experiences:
Loss of interest or pleasure in most activities.
Depressed mood most of the day, most days of the week
Sleeping a lot or not being able to sleep (may also have physical changes like constipation, appetite changes, low libido, trouble concentrating)
Reduce motor activity, fatigue, low energy
Feelings of worthlessness.
Diminished concentration, indecisiveness.
Recurrent thoughts of death.
In depression, these symptoms are not due to grief or loss; when the dominant emotion is loss or feeling of emptiness. With depression, the primary emotion is loss of pleasure, but it might also be hyperarousal of negative emotions, which impairs the ability to function.
Bipolar or manic depression clearly includes components of hyperarousal. For example:
Periods of intense euphoria with irritability,
high levels of energy (constant exercising our restless, agitated body movements)
Very little need for sleep
Periods of nonstop pressured talking
Racing thoughts that skip from subject to subject.
Grandiose delusions. (For example, the belief that. one has a plan for World Peace)
Impulsive recklessness and inappropriate behaviors (such as spending. money foolishly).
Inappropriate, excessive flirtatious or sexual activity and
In severe cases, hallucinations
There is much debate on genetic vs. environmental causes of the various types of depression, but most people take the view that predispositions toward depression or negative affect are greater when there is a family history of depression; however, it is important to note that the environment (epigenetics) generally determines whether these genes get turned on or not.
People who are depressed often have many negative or distorted thoughts. You can learn to deal more effectively with your moods if you master methods that will help you pinpoint and eliminate mental distortions that might cause you to feel upset, (see our section on managing thoughts).
It may be hard to hear, but emotions that seem to happen to you are most likely actually made by you. Negative life experiences can taint thoughts and perceptions. Many factors contribute to depressive states, which tend to grow or strengthen themselves because, ultimately, whatever you practice will become stronger.
Neuroplasticity and Depression
Our brain changes in response to how we use it. Once stimulated, a neuron may send signals to thousands of other neurons. The axon can divide and send out branches, which grow into circuits of neurons that fire together when activated. This natural growth process can be negatively impacted when your stress level is chronically elevated. The connections become altered like a tree that gets light only on one side and grows in a particular direction.
Neurons connect in networks that help us regulate stress or cope with various types of loss. If exercised or used often, circuits can grow into larger, more extensive networks. When neurons in a network are activated, many other neurons associated with these networks also fire.
This may be an extreme oversimplification, but it helps to understand depression and other mood states as conditions of the brain and nervous system. The view that the brain and nervous system are constantly changing depending on how we use them offers hope because you can notice what is happening with your thoughts and emotions and then consciously activate more peaceful or calm responses to life's challenges, strengthening healthy networks that help restore balance.
By improving your coping skills and learning to regulate your emotional responses, you can grow your system toward a healthier, more regulated mood state. Over time, this balances your system away from a dark mood state toward the light, where you are calm, peaceful, relaxed, and less hyper-aroused.
On the other hand, if someone feels that they are afflicted by whatever they are diagnosed with, they often develop a fixed mindset relative to their impairment. This leads them to look for some external cure or fix. They are not likely to improve until they believe they have some control over their condition. Neuroplasticity and a growth mindset are natural processes that, once understood, can be leveraged to help grow the skills needed to cope with life.
Many people look at depression as primarily a problem with brain chemistry because the medicines that help with depression change your chemistry. Medicines are very important, and they help people cope with the stress of life. They are useful tools, but they should not be relied upon exclusively to solve the problem. This reflects a fixed mindset that the person has a disease that needs to be treated and they will get better once the chemistry is corrected with the proper medication. Today, we know that the body can influence mood as much or more than the brain. Our gut creates and modulates over thirty neurotransmitters, and ninety percent of the serotonin in our body is stored in our gut. The body and the brain work together. Listening to our body and fine-tuning the brain-body connection helps keep us in balance. This brings us back to the idea of developing strategies and skills and a growth mindset that celebrates a person’s capacity for change and supports the individual’s ability to develop strategies and exercise more control over their mental state.
Progress and Setbacks
Life is a constant pattern of progress and setbacks. Every day is full of moments when life is pleasant and when pleasantness disappears. The sun comes up and goes down. This is the yin and yang, the give and take, the nature of existence.
We can get caught up in either direction and fail to see both sides' beauty and necessity.
Without darkness, we could not have light; without sadness, we could not have happiness; without death, we could not have life. When we suffer or look at how other people suffer, we can get caught up in suffering or be reminded of things to be grateful for.
Things that happen in life have an impact—illness, loss of a loved one, etc. These become special challenges that hopefully do not occur often, but when they do occur, we usually don’t have the coping skills we need.
To manage the more difficult emotions, it’s helpful to remember that we must have first gained something for every loss.
People suffer because there is great hardship and many types of losses. It’s easy to think about the many ways life can be difficult, and it’s easy to understand how anyone can become depressed or struggle with their mood when their losses exceed their capacity to cope. This is when we need skills and support from others to help us get through difficult times.
Loss is a natural part of life; we all struggle with various types of losses. Loss of youth, ability, beauty, status, health, respect, friendship, income, pets, self-respect, trust, hope, love, connections, and loved ones just to name a few.
Some people suffer more than their share, while others seem to have an easy ride. Grief and loss greatly impact everyone’s lives and anyone can experience situational depression, depressive episodes, or clinical depression when the stress of life or feelings of loss exceed our ability to cope. Count your blessings and never judge those who are less fortunate.
Fighting Back Against Depressive Thoughts
When something bad happens, you feel unhappy. That is natural. As you acknowledge that you feel bad, ask yourself, How is this also good? Let your mind find something good about it. Ponder the good in the bad. You might not always be able to find a silver lining but look for it just in case.
Think of a problem. Try to consider how it might also be good?
Jot down two or three ways the problem may also be good.
–Notice how your feelings change.
–Try to enhance the good feelings.
It might be good because it teaches you something.
You might be able to use the information somewhere else or for something else.
It might be good because it changes in time into a good thing.
As you try these strategies, stop and notice your breathing, stay as calm as possible, try to regulate your emotions.
Recall a happy feeling and enjoy and appreciate it.
Ask a question that might help solve a problem. Listen to the answer. Try not to focus on the downside.
These strategies are not intended to treat depression. This is a complicated condition that requires careful evaluation and a treatment plan designed by professionals. It is, however, possible to fight back against negative emotions and over time to move your emotions in a positive direction. Our sections on understanding emotions and developing helpful emotions provide many strategies to build helpful behaviors that will reduce depressive feelings.
Getting Help
This website provides helpful tips and strategies to help people overcome their struggles, but it is educational, not therapeutic. Every person is different, and even if people struggle with the same issue, they might need different paths to reach their goals. The therapeutic process allows a person’s individuality to surface with someone there to help. We feel it is essential to connect with a professional if you feel or even think you might need help.
Dr. David Burns’ wrote Feeling Good as a form of bibliotherapy for depression. It is a great resource if you cannot access in-person therapy. We have provided a link to his Depression Checklist which provides a quick, unofficial way to assess your level of depression. At the bottom of the checklist is a rating scale; we encourage you to consider working with a therapist even if you fall within the “Normal but unhappy” category. We believe everyone deserves to live their best life.
“Depression is one of the worst forms of suffering”
Material Taken From
Feeling Good, Dr. David Burns