Depression is not the blues it is a real disease that can inflict anyone going through severe stress, hardships, losses and pain. It is a persistent state of the feeling of sadness, crying spells, loss of energy, changes in appetite,forgetfulness, lack of pleasure or anhedonia, low energy, lack of motivation, confusion, feelings of dread, as well as hopelessness and helplessness.
There are three types of depression:
Major Depression Disorder: A major depression will exhibit at least five of the depression symptoms within a two week period. It can affect a person’s ability to eat, work, sleep or even study.
Persistent depressive disorder (PDD): Can be recurrent or ongoing for a period of time in one’s life. It may include most of the symptoms associated with major depressive disorder. PDD is less severe than a major depression but can occur for a minimum of two years. A manifestation of PDD will include low energy, lack of appetite or overeating, lack of sleep or oversleeping as well as feeling irritated, stressed or not having a desire to participate in a lot of activities. This type of depression can be temporary.
Bipolar disorder: Bi-polar is a mood cycle that causes a person to experience extreme high moods (mania), mild moods (hypomania) and extreme low moods (depression).
In the United States of America:
6.9% of adults have experienced at least one major depressive episode1.
About 14.8 million adults in the U.S or 6.7% of persons older than 18 years suffer from major depressive disorder.1
Approximately 1.5% of the population older than 18 years have PDD1.
Treatment modality
At MMCG we treat depression with psychotherapy. Psychotherapy involves the use of cognitive behavioral therapy which involves cognitive reconstruction to deprogram negative beliefs fueling the depression.
Please feel free to take this test to determine the severity of your depression
Beck’s Depression Inventory – A Test to measure the severity of depression
http://mhinnovation.net/sites/default/files/downloads/innovation/research/BDI%20with%20interpretation.pdf
- Anxiety and Depression Association of America. (2014). Facts and Statistics. Retrieved fromhttp://www.adaa.org/about-adaa/press-room/facts-statistics
The first step towards recovery is to recognize that you are suffering from depression. You are not alone in this struggle. We are here to help relieve you from any emotional pain. Please do not hesitate to contact us at 732-770-4331 if you are experiencing any of these symptoms so that we can start working on relieving you from this emotional pain.