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Illness and Depression

Depression often tags along with another serious illness such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, Parkinson’s Disease and more.  So often doctors will treat the illness but not treat the depression which follows along. This is sad because if you are so dejected and pessimistic about being sick, chances are your recovery won’t be the best.

Cancer Can Scare You to Death

Millions of people are living with a current or past diagnosis of cancer. Just the word ‘cancer’ causes people to panic, become overcome with fear of dying, and think they are forever ruined. There is an immediate fear of death, life plans upset, change in lifestyle, medical bills to face, and a fight to survive.  So often your doctor, your family, friends, and cancer specialists think that it is normal for you to be depressed when you have cancer and don’t think it needs to be treated.  But how can you really participate in your treatment plan if you are expecting the worst, and knowing it will happen?

I have sat with people and their families when the diagnosis of cancer is given. The reaction is always disbelief, even if the person was suspecting this to be true. I have held the hand of women who have been told that their husbands have prostate cancer, lung cancer, brain cancer, and many more.  I have sat silent with husbands who have just been given the news that their wife has breast cancer, uterine cancer, pancreatic cancer, and ovarian cancer.  Men tend not to talk but their pain can be felt through the looks on their faces. Cancer scares people and sometimes it scares them to death before their time.

Depression can and should be treated right along with any treatment for cancer. Antidepressant medications are usually well tolerated but there may be some side effects and problems with other medications taken.  It is very important to make it clear to your doctor that you need help for your depression as well as your cancer. It is also very important that if you are the husband, wife, sibling, or child of someone who is dealing with cancer to do the same thing. Please ask your doctor for antidepressant medication if you are suffering with cancer and are depressed.

Depression Can Break Your Heart

People with heart disease tend to suffer from depression more than healthy heart people. Flip that coin and people with depression are at greater risk for getting heart disease. If you have heart disease and are depressed you have a bigger risk of death after a heart attack. After having heart surgery, it’s very important to follow through with necessary rehabilitation.  This is more difficult for someone who is depressed. Depression can increase blood pressure and affect clotting.  It can also lead to elevated insulin and cholesterol levels.  It can increase stress hormones, those fight or flight impulses we have when faced with danger. Again, a chemical imbalance in the brain sends the wrong messages to the body. Depression and heart disease are deadly companions and can lead to each other. They are a frightening hand in glove combination.

Despite the real connection between these two dangerous illnesses, depression often goes undiagnosed and untreated. Persons with heart disease, their families and friends, and even their doctors and cardiologists may miss depression’s warning signs. And when treatment is given it is often not enough. They think that these feelings just go along with heart disease.  When my husband had emergency open heart surgery, there was never any discussion about depression which went along with heart problems.  I was on top of it and worked to make sure my husband was able to get all the support he needed. Others may not know what to do and they get no help from the doctors.

The impact of depression and heart disease is enormous. Depression is the leading cause of disability and heart disease is by far the leading cause of death in the US. One in three Americans will die of some form of heart disease. So it is very important that we all become aware that depression and heart disease are associated with sickness and death and proper treatment must be given. Newer anti depressants don’t have the negative complications that the previous ones did.

Treatment for depression helps you manage heart problems better and have a better quality of life. It should be made very clear to people with heart problems complicated by depression that exercise is one of the best treatments for both.

Treatment for depression helps people manage both diseases, making survival and enjoyment of life possible. Keep your heart and mind safe and sound. Total health is in your future.

Young healthy adults aged between 17 and 24 years who get less than an average of 5 hours’ sleep each night have three times the risk of developing a mental illness compared to individuals of the same age who sleep eight to nine hours every night, according to a study carried out by the George Institute on Global Health, published in the medical journal Sleep…

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I am 23 year old female. I have a 2 year old daughter. I have had problems with depression since I have had her. Because of the depression, I have gained 40 lbs. Is there something else besides medicine that I can take or do? My depression is hurting my marriage. I am out of refills on my medication. I just want something besides my medication to help me, if there is any. Serious answers only please.

Major depression is one of the biggest joy stealers in life. The most severe category of clinical depression, major depression can be triggered by any of three causes .

First, a major trauma in your life can set off a major depression. A severe loss like the death of a loved one, a divorce, a job loss, or other significantly dramatic life experience can start an episode of major depression. or setback or other trauma can trigger a major depression.

Second, you can develop major depression slowly over time if you experience a number of personal disappointments or life problems.

Third, you can simply manifest major depression seemingly out of nowhere. This happens when you develop a chemical imbalance in your brain function. Genetics can also be a cause of this type of depression.

If you’re lucky, you’ll suffer major depression only once in your lifetime. Known as single episode depression, this kind of one-time depression generally responds well to treatment, either medical or alternative.

Unfortunately, many people experience recurring depression. They suffer for weeks or months or even years and then respond to treatment or get well practically overnight. They’ll experience months or years depression-free and then begin feeling depressed again. This type of depression is also treatable, but depression treatment for recurring depression is more complicating and less exact.

When a person suffers from major depression, no matter what the cause, she will struggle with everyday tasks. Getting out of bed in the morning is a major struggle. Focusing is difficult. Pleasure is a thing of the past. The sufferer feels alone and hopeless. Life seems meaningless and purposeless.

So how do you cope with major depression?

You basically have two choices. You can either ride it out and allow it to pass naturally or you can seek depression treatment.

If you’re suffering depression as a result of a major trauma, riding it out is a possible option. Even so, it’s an option that has risks.

Depression that’s caused by trauma may start with a reaction to life events, but it can become chemical. When this happens, the depression may linger far past when you think you should have recovered from your trauma. This lingering depression can go on and on if you don’t get depression treatment.

How long do you want to be without joy in your life?

The smart response to any kind of major depression is depression treatment. Depending on your preferences, either seek medical help and get depression medicine or use alternative therapies like natural depression supplements, energy healing, and depression self care.

Talking through the problems and trauma in your life can help you heal depression. Get therapy or ask for help from loved ones. Don’t suffer through a major depression alone. Keeping your dark despair bottled up inside will only make major depression worse.

No matter what causes your major depression, you can’t afford to let it stay around any longer than necessary. Choose at least one form of depression treatment and make it a daily part of your life. Prioritizing your mental health care will help you heal major depression more quickly.

Major depression robs life of joy. To reclaim your life, take steps to banish major depression.

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have found that yoga may be superior to other forms of exercise in its positive effect on mood and anxiety. The findings, which currently appear on-line at Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, is the first to demonstrate an association between yoga postures, increased GABA levels and decreased anxiety…

View full post on Depression News From Medical News Today

I am having for the first time auditory alucinations. I suffer from Psychotic Depression but I am so afraid to get Schizophrenia. What is the difference between psychotic depression and schizophrenia???

I have depression, and I’ve tried to kill myself, hell, I even used to cut, but I want you all to help me out here..How many people think suicide or depression, hell, even cutting, is an illness? Cause really I’m sick of people thinking it is, so please, tell me you opinion, do you think they are illnesses?

Depression is a serious condition affecting many people at any given time. There is some difference between an individual saying that he or she is feeling depressed and someone who is experiencing the clinical form of depression. Occasionally feeling depressed is part of being human. It is normal and natural for people to occasionally feel sad or moody for a day or two. When that feeling becomes extended, however, then the individual may be experiencing depression.

What Causes Depression? Depression can be caused by emotional factors. At times, the world becomes overwhelming and frightening. People experiencing such emotions can become depressed. These overwhelming emotions can be caused by triggering events. At other times, however, there does not seem to be a triggering event for depression. At such times, the actual cause for depression might be genetics, hormonal causes, or chemical imbalances in the body. General anxiety disorder may be associated with the cause of depression as well.

What does Depression Look Like? The symptoms of depression can vary from case to case. People with depression can lack energy or interest in the world. In addition, people experiencing depression may find it difficult to concentrate, and may experience feelings of worthlessness. People experiencing depression may als be restless and find it difficult to sleep. The symptoms of depression must show a change in the manner that a person used to feel or behave. They symptoms of depression may vary based on the age and sex of the individual. Because depression is so variable, the only way to diagnose depression is by a professional.

What is Chronic Depression? Chronic depression is a disease of varying severity. The person who is experiencing chronic depression may even be able to function rather normally; however, they often appear to be unhappy. The symptoms of chronic depression are persistent, but they are not of the same magnitude as those shown by someone experiencing major depression. Chronic depression is also called “dysthymia.”

What is Major Depression? Major depression is the most severe kind of depression that a person can experience. It is possible for a person to experience major depression at one time in his or her life without it becoming chronic or repetitive. In this case, the depression can be said to be “episodic,” and is probably related to a single event and will not be repeated. However, depression can also be “recurrent.” This kind of depression is seen repeatedly over a person’s lifetime, which is separated by periods in which the person is not depressed.

Chronic and major depression can be treated in the same manner as “regular” depression. Depression is responsive to “talk” therapy, as well as to medications. “Talk” therapy is that which most people are familiar, in which the client and the therapist square off with each other either in private or in groups. In addition, medication can be used to treat depression. Various kinds of drugs are available for treatment of depression. Medication is often used in combination with talk therapy. Many people consider this combination to be most effective, as medication can quiet the patient’s symptoms while talk therapy can be used to get to the root of the problem and address it.

On Monday, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that women are entitled to eight weeks of unpaid maternity leave without risking job loss under state law but that they are not protected after that time, the Boston Globe reports. The decision was praised as a victory for business interests by John Barter, a lawyer representing telecommunications firm Global NAPs, Inc…

View full post on Depression News From Medical News Today

I’m often depressed, and i just wondered what the difference is between just being depressed, and clinical?

At what point does depression become depression?