How to Assess Depression
Depression can manifest itself as an acute or chronic condition and can affect people of any age, ethnicity or social group. Depression can be triggered by a stressful life event, such as the loss of a loved one, or it can be caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. Despite the cause, the symptoms of depression can be categorized as changes in typical patterns of behavior such as eating, sleeping and social habits. Depression behaves differently in different people, but there are general guidelines for ascertaining whether or not depression is affecting you or someone you love.
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Instructions
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Assess the risk factors. Common risk factors for depression include parents who stay at home with multiple small children, chronic medical conditions such as diabetes or HIV/AIDS, alcoholism, drug abuse, genetic predisposition to depression, family members who have committed suicide and being part of a disadvantaged societal group.
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Evaluate life circumstances. Have there been any significant changes? Significant changes include things such as birth, death, loss or threatened loss of stability, financial strain, recently quitting smoking and recent surgery.
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Recognize present symptoms. Symptoms of depression typically present themselves as changes easily recognized by others in your lifestyle and habitual behavior. In addition to the changes mentioned in the overview, symptoms can include changes in energy levels, cognitive performance, feelings of guilt and hopelessness and chronic indecisiveness.
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Consider culture. Clinical depression is seen as weakness in character within some cultural groups. People who live in cultures accepting of depression are more likely to admit they have a problem and seek treatment for it.
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Seek professional advice. Trained professionals can provide supportive services and, if necessary, medication or alternative therapies to ease symptoms. Often simply talking about what ails you to a third party produces insight on the cause of the symptoms and what course of treatment to take.
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Tips & Warnings
In persons with a history of depression without mania, sudden and drastic improvements in mood can be caused by the reassuring thoughts of suicide as a means to end the suffering.
In the United States, many patients are routinely screened for depression at physical examinations. If they are thought to be at risk, there are medical tests performed to rule out medical causes, such as thyroid problems.
Individuals suffering from any form of depression need a strong support network of loved ones to overcome the condition.
Some insurance companies only pay psychiatrists or psychologists when they diagnose a major mental disorder, versus acute onset depression caused by recent life events. This causes many professionals to misdiagnose clinical depression.
Certain prescription medications used to treat depression can increase suicidal thoughts.
