1. What is depression?
Depression is more than the blues or the blahs; it is more than the normal, everyday ups and downs. When that "down" mood, along with other symptoms, lasts for more than a couple of weeks, the condition may be clinical depression. Clinical depression is a serious health problem that affects the total person. In addition to feelings, it can change behavior, physical health and appearance, academic performance, and the ability to handle everyday decisions and pressures.
2. What is depression?
Most people think of depression only as sadness and a low mood, but clinical depression is far more than the ordinary "down" moods everyone experiences now and then. Sadness will pass after a visit with a friend or a good movie. Depression is also more than feeling sad or "down." Depression affects our thinking, our emotions, our behavior and our physical health. You might feel down, or empty. Some people have difficulty remembering, or can't make decisions like they once did. Many leisure activities just don't interest you any more. You have aches and pains that keep coming back, and your physician can't explain it. Depression, with many of these symptoms, that goes on and on and on for weeks and months is called clinical depression.
Depression is also more than the feeling of grief you experience after losing someone you love. Following such a loss, for many people, a depressed mood is a normal reaction to grief. Some people find it helpful to join a mutual support group, such as a widowed-persons group, to talk with others experiencing similar feelings. But, if the grief does not go away within a few months, it may be depression.
3. Two serious types of clinical depression are major depression and bipolar disorder.
1)Major Depression:
Major depression makes it almost impossible to carry on usual activities, sleep, eat, or enjoy life. Pleasure seems a thing of the past. This type of depression can occur once in a lifetime or, for many people, it can recur several times. People with a major depression need professional treatment.
2)Bipolar Disorder (Manic-Depressive Illness):
Another type of depression, bipolar disorder--or manic-depressive illness--leads to severe mood swings, from extreme "lows" to excessive "highs." These states of extreme elation and unbounded energy are called mania. This disorder usually starts when people are in their early twenties. Though unusual for this type of depression to start for the first time in later life, it requires medical treatment, whatever the person's age.
4. Depression Defined
Depression is an extremely common condition that affects more than 1 in 20 people in any one year in Western society. It is one of several hyperemotional states. A sudden loss of interest in life combined with a feeling of worthlessness may be associated with depression. Normally joy, sadness and grief are parts of everyday life. While a short period of depression in our response to daily problems is normal, a long period of depression and sadness is abnormal and is called “clinical depression”. Depression can run in families, partly because families tend to eat the same foods and pass from one generation to the next similar eating patterns, and partly through genetics. Concerning genetics, we have found no evidence in the medical literature of a “depression” gene, but much evidence for a search for one. I suspect that the strong genetic component will be found to involve improper or inadequate magnesium metabolism.
5. What is the best form of therapy for depression?
One of the best is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which was originated by Dr. Aaron T. Beck back in the 50's. The principle behind it is that if we think something often enough we begin to belief in its truth. Depressed people are haunted by constant negative thoughts, called Cognitive Distortions, which are usually a gross distortion of reality. For example, a person may say, "I'm a failure at everything". If they examined the situation from a logical standpoint they would immediately see this is far from the truth. They may have not succeeded at few things, but they have many, many more successes than failures. For depressives, however, their past successes quickly fade from view and they concentrate only on the negative. What Cognitive Therapy teaches us is to avoid making this kind of logical error. It teaches us to reframe our thoughts about ourselves in a way that's more consistent with reality. When we begin to make more positive and truthful statements about ourselves on a regular basis we also feel better.
6. Signs of clinical depression
Depression is mediated by the central nervous system, in particular the limbic part of the brain. The trigeminal nerve (by multisynaptic pathways) has a very large influence on this part of the brain. Additionally, substance P which is elevated with jaw malalignment and chronic pain, is a major neuro- transmitter in the brain and is known to effect seratonin levels. Depressed seratonin levels are known to be associated with depression. This is the primary suspected pathway that is thought to cause depression in the pressence of chronic pain.
Depression could occur due to jaw malalignment even when there is no manefestation of head pain or jaw dysfunction. Substance P levels can be covertly effected by proprioceptive pathways of the trigeminal nerve influencing the mesencephalic nucleus in the brain
Depression is mediated by the central nervous system, in particular the limbic part of the brain. The trigeminal nerve (by multisynaptic pathways) has a very large influence on this part of the brain. Additionally, substance P which is elevated with jaw malalignment and chronic pain, is a major neuro- transmitter in the brain and is known to effect seratonin levels. Depressed seratonin levels are known to be associated with depression. This is the primary suspected pathway that is thought to cause depression in the pressence of chronic pain.
Depression could occur due to jaw malalignment even when there is no manefestation of head pain or jaw dysfunction. Substance P levels can be covertly effected by proprioceptive pathways of the trigeminal nerve influencing the mesencephalic nucleus in the brain
7. What Causes Depression?
The causes of depression are not entirely clear. Sometimes an event will bring it on, but other times it will not. There is also evidence that genetic and biochemical factors may play a role in the development of depression, but that role remains to be more thoroughly researched.
Also, some people may be more prone to being depressed than others. This predisposition involves a person's development, motivations for action, and his/her needs. When needs become excessive, extreme, or distorted, the behavior that is exhibited to fill them may be abnormal and depression producing.
The role of events in a depression does not end with the event that brought on the depression. Events can build on each other. For instance, the depressed person may become increasingly irritable and have to stop working, which can further contribute to the depressed mood.
Many experts believe that depression grows out of a combination of these factors. They say that the body chemistry of some people gives them the tendency toward depression, and then something in the life situation happens to trigger that depression. This triggering event is different in different people, but is often linked to some kind of loss, such as the loss of a loved one or of a job, or the loss of roots when people move or leave home for the first time.
8. What is the depression by my opinion! (J, E, ADAMS)
J,E,ADAMS says what is depression? That is “ depression all background by evil ”. The bible recognize not only the material world, but a spiritual world intimately connected with it, and spiritual beings both good and bad who have access to, and influence for good and ill, the world inhabitants. So demons offer to us depression to no not believe God. Demon’s purpose is that we fail for faith life.
.Reference
1. Fawcett J. Depression. Best Practice of Medicine. 2001, May. Available form: URL: http://diseasedex.com/bpm/bpm.asp?page=BPM01PS19
2.Paulsen RH. Patient information: Depression. UpToDate(R) 2002 Available form: URL: http://www.uptodate.com
3.Paulsen RH. Depression: Pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, and diagnosis. Up To Date(R) 2002 Available form: URL: http://www.uptodate.com