Lets Fight Depression

There is no simple answer when it comes to major depressive disorder as this tends to be a chronic disease that will stick with you for the rest of your life.  Fortunately, many people who suffer from major depression are able to reduce or even eliminate the depressive symptoms through a variety of treatments.  The variety of depression treatment categories that can be seen along the right side can provide insight into some of the older and newer treatments for major depression.  Some of these medicines have been proven over time whereas some are still in the experimental stages so it will ultimately be a decision that is made by both the person suffering from major depressive disorder as well as their psychiatrist.  Let’s begin the discussion of major depressive disorder starting with an introduction to the classification and what makes up the disorder.

Kris has tried a variety of medication before his doctor and he came to a consensus on an effective treatment plan.  Kris currently takes the prescription medication Celexa which is an anti-depressant.

What is Major Depressive Disorder?

The term depression is often used in a variety of contexts, but generally when a person uses the term depression they are referring to major depressive disorder.  If a person says that they are depressed they may or may not be referring to this disorder so it is important that you pay close attention to the wording as depression and depressed have two very different meanings in certain contexts.  The term major depressive disorder comes directly from the DSM-IV, the book that psychiatrists use to determine a diagnosis.  It is specifically listed under mood disorders and is classified in the 296.* number range which you may see listed on your prescription.  However from your perspective, major depression is a mental disorder that you will be fighting for the rest of your life.  Unlike other mental diseases that are temporary, those diagnosed with recurrent major depressive disorder are likely to have suicidal tendencies throughout the rest of their life if they do not seek treatment.  Unfortunately, seeking treatment for major depressive disorder or clinical depression can be incredibly difficult because it admits that you are no longer in control of your own body.  This is very difficult for many people to come to grips with as a diagnosis of major depressive disorder is going to require a variety of medications that will likely include a lifelong struggle with a changing of doses over time as the body becomes immune to various treatments.  Although psychiatrists and even Wikipedia tend to explain major depressive disorder in terms of definitions, it really boils down to debilitating feelings of hopelessness often without a rational explanation.  These extreme and uncontrollable feelings of depression often seems counter-intuitive to the general population as depression is completely independent of lifestyle so sometimes the smartest or even kindest people may actually be feeling the most hopeless.  It is important to understand that people with major depressive disorder may literally be unable to control their feelings of depression and should always seek help with their depression when needed.  That is why it is so important for friends and family to support a person with major depression without judging them for their sometimes irrational actions.

Although Kris has been in treatment for depression for most of his life, his symptoms still return on occasion.  This generally results in increased dosage of medication.  Diagnosing and treating Major Depressive Disorder is not an exact science so it is essential that you take charge of your own treatment plan in conjunction with your doctor.  Fighting clinical depression starts will the willingness to accept help for depression.

Why Do I Have Major Depressive Disorder?

Clinical depression is not a contagious disease and there is no single factor that causes major depressive disorder in patients.  It is clear that there are some components of depression that are psychological and there are others that are physical so it is a combination of the two.

Physical Causes of Major Depression

Unlike minor depression and other milder forms of depression, clinical depression generally has a physical component where the brain is not producing enough of the chemicals that make a person happy including serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine.  That’s why it is so important to understand that major depression is not your fault.  Just as some people get the flu more often because of the chemical makeup of their immune system, people with depression get depressed because of a chemical makeup that is susceptible to depressive episodes.  In cases where there is a chemical imbalance, doctors will usually prescribe medication to increase one of these three chemicals to reduce major depression symptoms.

Kris’s psychiatrist thinks that he has a chemical imbalance of dopamine and serotonin where his brain is flooding with extreme amounts of these chemicals for long periods of time and then produces almost none of these two chemicals for long periods of time causing manic symptoms for months and major depressive symptoms for months.

Psychological Causes of Clinical Depression

Part of the causes of clinical depression debate goes back to the nature vs. nurture argument.  Although there are clearly physical causes involving a lack of critical chemicals in the brain, major depression is also brought on by trauma.  Death, abuse, negligence, or abandonment are potential psychological causes of major depressive disorder.  Check out the causes of depression section for more detailed information on potential causes of depression.

Considering that the lines are so blurred on the exact cause of major depression, a mistake by your psychiatrist especially if you over-exaggerate your symptoms can be a real possibility.  This makes it so that major depression may be over-diagnosed in some countries and under-diagnosed in other countries due to the difficulty of determining healthy depression versus unhealthy depression.  Major depression and your feelings are so interlinked that you should always have a neutral third party such as close friend monitoring your behavior to ensure that your mood remains stable.  This should be someone that you can always go to when you want to talk, and you should be willing to receive open and honest feedback from them when they feel that something is wrong or your depression symptoms are returning.

Kris uses friends and family members who are close to him to determine whether his symptoms of depression are returning.  Due to the psychological component, it can be very difficult to determine whether a person is suffering from depressive symptoms without a non-biased third party (in cases other than suicidal thoughts which are always unhealthy).

Conclusion

Only a doctor can help you determine whether or not you are suffering from major depressive disorder.  If you have any doubt in your mind at all then you should set up an appointment with a psychiatrist because they will be able to help you determine the level of depression in your particular case.  The very first thing to understand is that major depression is not your fault, and that there are millions of us out there that are also suffering from this very nasty disease.  There are plenty of support groups available for those suffering from depression and even government organizations completely dedicated to the study of depression.  Clinical depression is something that is not going to go away so it is incredibly important that you continue on your treatment plan for major depression even when you appear to be cured.  Unlike other forms of depression once you have had multiple recurring depressive episodes, treatment for the rest of your life is inevitable.  One day they may come out with a permanent cure, but today major depressive disorder will be looming over your shoulder for the rest of your life.

Major depressive disorder is not something that goes away.  Kris has some really good support resources in the coping with depression section.