Depression

Depression can feel so overwhelming.

You might recognize sadness, apathy, anger, or fatigue. You might feel that the downward spiral is worsening and try as you might, the spiral only continues downward.

You might also be very well functioning in your life, successful, look like you have it all together, be the envy of others and STILL have depression. Beneath the surface, you may know better. You may feel emptiness and sadness that doesn’t seem to go away even when there doesn’t seem to be a logical reason for the sadness and depression.

Depression can look different for men, women, and children.

Men may experience symptoms related to their:

• mood, such as anger, aggressiveness, irritability, anxiousness, restlessness
• emotional well-being, such as feeling empty, sad, hopeless
• behavior, such as loss of interest, no longer finding pleasure in favorite activities, feeling tired easily, thoughts of suicide, drinking excessively, using drugs, engaging in high-risk activities
• sexual interest, such as reduced sexual desire, lack of sexual performance
• cognitive abilities, such as inability to concentrate, difficulty completing tasks, delayed responses during conversations
• sleep patterns, such as insomnia, restless sleep, excessive sleepiness, not sleeping through the night
• physical well-being, such as fatigue, pains, headache, digestive problems

Women may experience symptoms related to their:

• mood, such as irritability
• emotional well-being, such as feeling sad or empty, anxious or hopeless
• behavior, such as loss of interest in activities, withdrawing from social engagements, thoughts of suicide
• cognitive abilities, such as thinking or talking more slowly
• sleep patterns, such as difficulty sleeping through the night, waking early, sleeping too much
• physical well-being, such as decreased energy, greater fatigue, changes in appetite, weight changes, aches, pain, headaches, increased cramps

Children may experience symptoms related to their:

• mood, such as irritability, anger, mood swings, crying
• emotional well-being, such as feelings of incompetence (e.g. “I can’t do anything right”) or despair, crying, intense sadness
• behavior, such as getting into trouble at school or refusing to go to school, avoiding friends or siblings, thoughts of death or suicide
• cognitive abilities, such as difficulty concentrating, decline in school performance, changes in grades
• sleep patterns, such as difficulty sleeping or sleeping too much
• physical well-being, such as loss of energy, digestive problems, changes in appetite, weight loss or gain

There are many symptoms related to depression. However, we want you to know that depression is treatable and these symptoms can be lessened with appropriate treatment. Individuals with depression may feel very low motivation to change things, particularly if they’ve tried “everything”. Allow us to help walk through the fog with you, identify what may be causing the depression, and treat the issue.