Classic Symptoms of Depression, Treatment in Houston
The classic symptoms of depression go beyond a sad mood. Most people have felt sad or depressed at times, and these types of feelings are normal reactions to a loss, life's struggles, or an injured self-esteem.
In situations where one has intense feelings of sadness and loss of interest causing significant distress or impairment to normal functioning, the 'depression' is more than normal sadness. It may be clinical depression, which is a treatable medical condition that can affect your emotional, psychological and physical well-being in different ways.
Common symptoms of depression can make work and daily living almost unbearable. Often times, it is feeling helpless, hopeless and worthless. It is imperative to understand that you cannot control these persistent feelings, and similar to any physical illness there can be a physiological cause for depression.
The good news is that research has proven that treatments are successful for reducing classic depression symptoms, and also, in some cases for curing them. Several treatments are effective and can include different modalities of psychotherapy and a variety of proven medications. The most successful treatment often reported is a combination of both psychotherapy and medication.
Symptoms of depression are experienced most of the entire day, either every day or almost every day, and persist for at least two weeks. Depression is NOT due to substances, certain medical illnesses, or a traumatic loss or event occurring in the past two months.
According to the DSM IV, manual for diagnosis of mental health, depression occurs if you have 5 of these classic symptoms at the same time:
- Loss of interest in things that usually bring joy; loss of interest in friends, sex.
- Loss of focus, concentrating, indecisiveness.
- Feeling sad, empty, hopeless or numb.
- Feelings of guilt or worthlessness, irrational thinking.
- Thoughts of suicide.
- Fatigue, loss of energy, lethargic most every day.
- Insomnia or hypersomnia.
- A sense of restless or pyschomotor agitation – or being slowed down.
- Loss or Gain of weight that is significant in the past month (change of 5% ).
Houston psychotherapist Nancy D is available to help you or anyone you know who may be experiencing some of these classic symptoms of depression. Nancy offers compassion and guidance and provides appointments within a short time frame. There are a wide range of depressive symptoms which do not affect everyone the same way. She can assist in an assessment and an evaluation, and when necessary, can make a medical or other appropriate referral.
There is help available and no one needs to suffer alone. Today, with proper treatment there is a cure.
Contact Nancy today to find out more about the classic symptoms of depression and treatment in Houston.