Depression

9 Pages 2212 Words

A depressive disorder is an illness that involves the body, mood, and thoughts. It affects the way a person eats and sleeps, the way one feels about oneself, and the way one thinks about things. A depressive disorder is not the same as a passing blue mood. It is not a sign of personal weakness or a condition that can be willed or wished away. People with a depressive illness cannot merely "pull themselves together" and get better. Without treatment, symptoms can last for weeks, months, or years. Appropriate treatment, however, can help most people who suffer from depression. There are approximately 1.7 million to 6.3 million American being treated for depression. “The researchers attributed the sharp increases to the emergence of aggressively marketed new drugs like Prozac, the rise in managed care and an easing of the stigma attached to the disease (Mercola).”
Like other diseases and or disorders, depressive disorders come in different forms. However, within these types there are variations in the number of symptoms, their severity, and persistence. The three most diagnosed cases of depression are major depression, dsythymia, and bipolar disorder. Major depressive disorder is a disorder marked by the symptoms of depression that is disabling and is not caused by such factors as drugs or general medical conditions. On the other hand, Dysthymic disorder is similar to but longer-lasting, and less disabling than a major depressive disorder. Finally, bipolar disorder the most extreme of the three is marked by an alternation of intermixed periods of mania and depression.
Not everyone who is depressed experiences every symptom. Some people experience a few symptoms, some many. Severity of symptoms varies with individuals, not to mention over periods of time. Such symptoms are as follows: feelings of hopelessness, guilt, worthlessness, fatigue, lack of energy, loss of interest in friends, activities, hobbies, et...