No one needs to suffer in silence
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 18.8 million adults in the United States suffer from depression. For the most part, this figure is spread evenly across racial lines, but a 2003 study in the Archives of General Psychiatry reported that there is a difference among those suffering from chronic depression. Roughly 56 percent of African Americans as well as 56 percent of Caribbean blacks who suffer from major depressive disorder reported that their depression was chronic, compared to only 38.6 percent of whites.
The study also found that African Americans and Caribbean blacks rate their depression as severe or disabling, and are more likely to go untreated than their non-Hispanic white counterparts. Less than half of African Americans and only 24.3 percent of Caribbean blacks receive treatment for their condition.
In light of these figures, it is important to understand depression, its symptoms, and the treatment options available.
While sadness and despair are feelings that we all are familiar with, when these feelings become deeply rooted, long-lasting, and begin to interrupt daily life, an episode of major depressive disorder (MDD), a type of clinical depression, could be responsible. Another type of depression, chronic depression, shares the same symptoms as MDD but lasts longer and tends to be less severe. Other types of depression include bipolar disease, which is accompanied by extreme shifts in mood; seasonal depression, which starts at the same time each year and usually lasts the length of a season; psychotic depression, which also includes some symptoms of psychosis; and postpartum depression, which sometimes develops in new mothers.
Depression expresses itself in many different ways. Common symptoms include:
• Sadness
• No longer enjoying the things that once brought you happiness
• Lack of energy
• Feelings of hopelessness or worthlessness
• Difficulty concentrating
• Difficulty making decisions
• Insomnia or excessive sleep
• Stomach and digestive problems
• Decreased sex drive
• Aches, pain, recurring headaches
• Change in appetite
• Weight loss or gain
• Thoughts of death, suicide, or self-mutilation
• Self-mutilation or attempting suicide
If any of these symptoms persist for two weeks or more, or if they are significantly interfering with your normal daily activities, it is necessary to contact a doctor. While it is not uncommon to experience depression — one in four Americans will experience a period of depression in their lifetime — it is all too common for depression to remain untreated.
The doctor will likely complete a full medical evaluation, a depression screening test and blood tests in order to rule out other physical diseases that have symptoms similar to those of depression. As treatment, your doctor may recommend “talk” therapy, medication, or both. A group of drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs, is often the first-line treatment for depression because they have fewer serious side effects.
Whatever treatment is recommended, it is important to know that depression is very treatable. No one needs to suffer from it in silence.
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