How does depression feel

For example, you may be at a greater risk if you tend to worry excessively , have a negative outlook on life, are highly self-critical, or suffer from low self-esteem. Early childhood trauma or abuse. Early life stresses such as childhood trauma, abuse, or bullying can make you more susceptible to a number of future health conditions, including depression. Alcohol or drug abuse. Substance abuse can often co-occur with depression.

Many people use alcohol or drugs as a means of self-medicating their moods or cope with stress or difficult emotions. If you are already at risk, abusing alcohol or drugs may push you over the edge.

There is also evidence that those who abuse opioid painkillers are at greater risk for depression. Understanding the underlying cause of your depression may help you overcome the problem. For example, if you are feeling depressed because of a dead-end job, the best treatment might be finding a more satisfying career rather than simply taking an antidepressant.

If you are new to an area and feeling lonely and sad, finding new friends will probably give you more of a mood boost than going to therapy.

In such cases, the depression is remedied by changing the situation. But there are many things you can do to lift and stabilize your mood. The key is to start with a few small goals and slowly build from there, trying to do a little more each day.

Feeling better takes time, but you can get there by making positive choices for yourself. Reach out to other people. The simple act of talking to someone face-to-face about how you feel can be an enormous help.

Get moving. But regular exercise can be as effective as antidepressant medication in countering the symptoms of depression. Take a short walk or put some music on and dance around. Start with small activities and build up from there. Eat a mood boosting diet. Reduce your intake of foods that can adversely affect your mood, such as caffeine, alcohol, trans fats, sugar and refined carbs.

And increase mood-enhancing nutrients such as Omega-3 fatty acids. Find ways to engage again with the world. Spend some time in nature, care for a pet, volunteer , pick up a hobby you used to enjoy or take up a new one.

There are many effective treatments for depression, including:. Consulting a therapist can provide you tools to treat depression from a variety of angles and motivate you to take the action necessary.

Therapy can also offer you the skills and insight to prevent the problem from coming back. Authors: Melinda Smith, M. Belmaker, R. Major Depressive Disorder.

New England Journal of Medicine, 1 , 55— Kessler, R. Depression and Anxiety, 27 4 , — Depressive Disorders. American Psychiatric Association.

What Causes Depression? Harvard Health Publishing. Co-occurring Disorders and Depression — How medical disorders can affect depression and vice versa. Mental Health America. Depression and Other Illnesses — An overview of the mental and physical illnesses that often co-exist with depression, and how this impacts treatment. Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance. In the U. Australia : Call Lifeline Australia at 13 11 This holiday season alone, millions of people will turn to HelpGuide for free mental health guidance and support.

So many people rely on us in their most difficult moments. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights.

Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Sadness is something we all experience from time to time. For some, this feeling is temporary and goes away on its own.

But for others, this persistent feeling of emptiness, unhappiness, and hopelessness becomes a regular part of their day.

If your mood has changed over the last few weeks and engaging in routine daily tasks is getting more difficult, you may have depression , and you're not alone. Depression is one of the most common mental health disorders in the United States. According to data from , it is estimated that Depression, a mood disorder that can cause mild to severe symptoms, can affect how you feel, think, and manage daily activities. Many people believe that depression needs to be debilitating and cause significant problems in their life in order to seek help.

Here are some examples of how depression may feel to you. Information presented in this article may be triggering to some people. If you are having suicidal thoughts, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at for support and assistance from a trained counselor.

If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call For more mental health resources, see our National Helpline Database. Depression affects people in different ways and can cause a wide variety of symptoms.

They range from lasting feelings of unhappiness and hopelessness, to losing interest in the things you used to enjoy and feeling very tearful. Many people with depression also have symptoms of anxiety. There can be physical symptoms too, such as feeling constantly tired, sleeping badly, having no appetite or sex drive, and various aches and pains.

The symptoms of depression range from mild to severe. At its mildest, you may simply feel persistently low in spirit, while severe depression can make you feel suicidal, that life is no longer worth living.

Most people experience feelings of stress, anxiety or low mood during difficult times. A low mood may improve after a short period of time, rather than being a sign of depression. It's important to seek help from a GP if you think you may be depressed. Many people wait a long time before seeking help for depression, but it's best not to delay.

The sooner you see a doctor, the sooner you can be on the way to recovery. Sometimes there's a trigger for depression. Life-changing events, such as bereavement, losing your job or giving birth, can bring it on. People with a family history of depression are more likely to experience it themselves.