Basic Facts About Clinical Depression
(Crisis Fact Sheets) 03.20.07Reprinted with permission from The American Counseling Association
- Clinical depression is one of the most common mental illnesses, affecting more than 19 million Americans each year.[1] This includes major depressive disorder, manic depression and dysthymia, a milder, longer-lasting form of depression.
- Depression causes people to lose pleasure from daily life, can complicate other medical conditions, and can even be serious enough to lead to suicide.
- Depression can occur to anyone, at any age, and to people of any race or ethnic group. Depression is never a “normal” part of life, no matter what your age, gender or health situation.
- Unfortunately, though treatment for depression is almost always successful, fewer than half of those suffering from this illness seek treatment.[2] Too many people resist treatment because they believe depression isn’t serious, that they can treat it themselves or that it is a personal weakness rather than a serious medical illness
Treatments for Clinical Depression:
Clinical depression is very treatable, with more than 80% of those who seek treatment showing improvement.[3] The choice of treatment depends on the pattern, severity, persistence of depressive symptoms and the history of the illness. As with many illnesses, early treatment is more effective and helps prevent the likelihood of serious recurrences.
Symptoms of Clinical Depression:
- Persistent sad, anxious or “empty” mood
- Sleeping too much or too little, middle of the night or early morning waking
- Reduced appetite and weight loss, or increased appetite and weight gain
- Loss of pleasure and interest in activities once enjoyed, including sex
- Restlessness, irritability
- Persistent physical symptoms that do not respond to treatment (such as chronic pain or digestive disorders)
- Difficulty concentrating, remembering or making decisions
- Fatigue or loss of energy
- Feeling guilty, hopeless or worthless
- Thoughts of suicide or death
Causes of Clinical Depression:
Many things can contribute to clinical depression. For some people, a number of factors seem to be involved, while for others a single factor can cause the illness. Oftentimes, people become depressed for no apparent reason.