Are you Depressed?

Are you feeling blue or just don’t feel motivated like you used to? Are you having difficulties finding enjoyment in activities that you used to enjoy? It’s normal to have a day or two you might feel down or sad, but a more pervasive pattern of these symptoms may indicate that you are clinically depressed.

According to the DSM-V, the diagnostic manual widely used across mental health providers, major depressive disorder is a characterized by having five (or more) of the following symptoms present during the same 2-week period these symptoms my represent a change from previous functioning.  Either depressed mood or loss of interest or pleasure in activities that were previously enjoyed must be present.

1.     Depressed mood most of the day nearly every day (i.e. feels sad, hopeless, “blue”)

2.     loss of interest or pleasure (Markedly diminished interest or pleasure in all or almost all activities most of the day.

3.     Significant weight loss when not dieting or weight gain or decrease or increase in appetite nearly every day.

4.      Insomnia (difficulties sleeping) or hypersomnia (sleeping too much) nearly every day.

5.     “Psychomotor agitation” (you are so fidgety or restless that you cannot sit still) or “retardation” (you are moving or speaking very slowly) nearly every day

6.     Fatigue or loss of energy nearly every day

7.     Feelings of worthlessness or excessive or inappropriate guilt nearly every day

8.     Diminished ability to think or concentrate, or indecisiveness, nearly every day

9.     Recurrent thoughts of death (not just fear of dying) or recurrent thoughts of wanting to kill yourself.

If you think you might be depressed, it’s important that you reach out to a healthcare professional for help.  There are a variety of options for treating depression, which include psychotherapy, lifestyle changes, medication, and acupuncture. Please feel to reach out to us to discuss your options for treatment.