Having a mental disorder is very common in New Zealand. Study shows that 46.6% of the population meets the criteria of having a mental illness. Knowing the signs and symptoms will aid in identifying depression and getting help for it sooner.
Depression is a mental health condition that can have a long-term impact on how you feel and behave. For example, when you are sad, your bad mood lasts for a long time, interfering with your sleep, relationships, career, and eating.
Depression may affect everyone; it can be caused or provoked by various factors, but the symptoms will be similar.
Symptoms
Depression symptoms typically appear over a few days or weeks; however, you may experience anxiety or moderate depression for several weeks or months beforehand. Not everyone suffering from depression will experience sorrow or a persistently poor mood. They may also exhibit other symptoms of depression, such as sleep issues. Others will report nonspecific physical complaints.
Here are some of the more common symptoms:
- Feeling sad, low, or depressed. You may feel melancholy or empty, or you may feel nothing at all. You may feel discomfort that is difficult to define or identify. You may find yourself crying for no apparent reason. Some people are always gloomy or depressed, while others have brief spurts of happiness that last only a day or two.
- Loss of interest and enjoyment in routine activities. You don’t enjoy your typical activities, such as sex, sports, spending time with loved ones, or hobbies.
- Irritable mood. This might be the most significant mood shift, particularly in younger individuals and males.
- Change in sleeping patterns. Sleeping less, having difficulty falling asleep, having restless sleep, and waking up early. Some folks discover that they require far more sleep than usual. Most depressed people wake up feeling drained from their rest.
- Change in appetite. People frequently do not feel like eating and, consequently, lose weight. Some people (typically those who sleep longer than normal) have an increased appetite, yet they often do not enjoy eating.
Other symptoms include:
- It is usual to have low energy and exhaustion. You may believe that even the most basic tasks are difficult.
- Physical sluggishness or agitation is frequently associated with severe depression. You may remain motionless for long periods and move, respond, and speak slowly, or you may be unable to stay still and pace and wring your hands.
- Feeling worthless or guilty causes a lack of confidence, which may cause you to retreat from friends and whanau. You can also believe you are a horrible person, parent, friend, or whanau member.
- Hopelessness and death are on your mind. You may believe there is no hope in life, wish you were dead, or consider suicide. These ideas and sentiments must always be treated seriously; seek immediate assistance.
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