"Do You Recognize the Early Warning Signs of a Clinical Depression Symptom?"
Did you know that a clinical depression symptom can affect you both mentally and physically?
What are the warning signs of depression?
Even though any sad mood could be called a depression, clinical depression is much more than a temporary sadness. I knew I suffered from depression when I realized that my symptoms lasted longer than two weeks. My clinical depression symptoms not only lasted two weeks, but affected my normal living. I couldn’t even speak, for example.
When your life is affected by your depression, you are suffering from at least one clinical depression symptom.
Perhaps you have a loved one who’s not acting herself or himself lately. Or perhaps you have not been acting YOURSELF lately and you’re not sure what’s wrong.
You’d do well to familiarize yourself with early warning signs of depression.
"Here's a list of typical clinical depression symptoms..."
According to the DSM-IV-TR criteria (What the heck is that you might say? It is ‘The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders’ (DSM-IV-TR), published by the American Psychiatric Association, and is the handbook used most often in diagnosing mental disorders in the United States.)
Anyway, according to the DSM-IV-TR, for diagnosing a major depressive disorder one or both of the following two required elements need to be present:
- Depressed mood, or
- Loss of interest or pleasure.
Either of these symptoms must also team up with four of a list of other clinical depression symptoms, which include:
Feelings of overwhelming sadness or fear, or seeming inability to feel emotion.
In older children and adolescents, an additional clinical depression symptom may be the use of drugs or alcohol. Also, depressed adolescents are at risk for destructive behaviours, such as eating disorders and self-harm.
"What are the facts on clinical depression symptoms?"
About 16% of the U.S. population at least one time or another in their lives has suffered from a clinical depression symptom. Depression most often happens in your late 20s; according to studies. About 2 times as many females as males report or receive treatment for clinical depression, though this imbalance is shrinking over the course of recent history; this difference seems to completely disappear after the age of 50 - 55, when most females have undergone the end of menopause.
Suffering from one or more clinical depression symptom is currently the leading cause of disability in the US as well as other countries, and is expected to become the second leading cause of disability worldwide (after heart disease) by the year 2020, according to the World Health Organization. Yikes!
One of the most widely used instruments for measuring depression severity is the Beck Depression Inventory, a 21 question multiple choice survey. (Ask your doctor for a copy as this is copywrited.)
It is hard for people who have not experienced a clinical depression symptom, either personally or by friends or family, to understand how severe it can affect you emotionally. As a result, it can be seen instead as being similar to "having the blues" or "feeling down". Not so!
As the list of clinical depression symptoms above indicates, clinical depression is a syndrome of interlocking symptoms which goes far beyond sad or painful feelings. There are significant changes in brain chemistry and an overall reduction in brain activity.
One hugely unfortunate result of not knowing enough about clinical depression symptoms is that depressed individuals are often criticized by themselves and others for not making an effort to help themselves.
However, the very nature of depression alters the way people think and react to situations to the point where they may become so pessimistic that they can do little or nothing about their condition.
Because of this terribly negative outlook, it is extremely important that the depressed individual seek professional help. (If you are a family member or friend of a depressed person, you know how powerless you feel to encourage them! It seems hopeless!)
An untreated clinical depression symptom can get worse. You may be temporarily stable or in remission but the depression comes back with a vengeance. If left untreated it may get better on its own within six months to two years, but there are times depression becomes chronic and lasts for many years or indefinitely. In many cases (but not all) treatment can shorten the period of distress to a matter of weeks.
While depressed, you may suffer socially (e.g. the break up of relationships), occupationally (e.g. loss of a job), financially and physically. Treatment of clinical depression symptoms can significantly reduce this damage, including reducing the risk of suicide. For all of these reasons, your treatment of clinical depression symptoms is necessary and could be life saving.
"What do you do if you are or your loved one is experiencing these signs of depression?"
Find someone who cares about you whom you can talk with.
"Some exciting research findings for you or your loved one!"
If you haven't already, you'll want to read a copy of our report findings at the link below. This information alone is worth hundreds of dollars, but it’s our complimentary gift to you. Not sure how long we’ll be allowed to do this. I’m sure many medical companies will be upset with us for providing you with this info. But, as you can see, we are on a mission to help you and your loved ones find joy and peace and escape the bonds of depression like we did. That is our desire; to spread the research so that you can benefit like we have. Spread the word and help us accomplish our mission.
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Source: The Medical Symptoms Database – Gateway to Medical and Self Discovery / http://www.symptoms101.com/med/archives/2005/06/clinical_depres.php / Posted by Medical Symptoms Database Staff at June 5, 2005 07:33 PM
