Dundee Association for Mental Health

Everyone feels down, miserable or sad at times but these feelings don’t usually last more than a week or two and do not normally interfere too much with our lives.  Depression is much more powerful and unpleasant than the short episodes of unhappiness that everyone experiences from time to time.  Depression lasts much longer; it can last for months rather than days and weeks and it interferes with people’s everyday lives.

Some people believe that depression is a sign of weakness, or an inability to cope, rather than realizing that depression is a common and treatable illness.

Depression lowers your mood, and can make you feel hopeless, useless, worthless, unmotivated and exhausted.  Other symptoms associated with depression may include:

§  Your sleep patterns being effected

§  Loss of appetite and weight (or the opposite, some people have an increase in appetite

   and put on weight)

§  Low self-esteem

§  Loss of self confidence

§  You can become irritable with people around you

§  It may even affect your physical health, sometimes you may even experience physical

  symptoms such as physical pains and constant headaches, sometimes physical symptoms

  can be the first sign of depression

§  Concentration on simple tasks can be difficult, making even the smallest of decisions

   difficult

§  You may feel worse at a particular time each day, for example in the mornings

§  You may not be able to cope with things that you used to cope with

§  You feel negative nearly all the time

§  You may feel like a weight is bearing down on you and feel as though things are always

   going to be like this and things will never get any better

§  You may have thoughts of suicide or self harm

Depression is like a vicious circle, because the worse you feel, the more depressed you are likely to get. Depression often goes hand in hand with anxiety.

The most important step is to seek help, you should talk to your GP if you feel you have been experiencing any of the above symptoms for more than 2 weeks, or if you have been experiencing suicidal thoughts, medical advice should be sought immediately. 

There are a number of different help options available to you, people with depression can greatly improve their quality of life when they receive the appropriate treatment. 

Some options available may include:

§  Psychotherapy/counseling

§  Antidepressants

§  Alternative remedies

§  Complementary Therapies (available at Orbit Approach through LETS project)

§  Self Help Groups