anxiety

10 Things You Might Not Know About Depression

by Joi

I recently spent nearly 3 hours researching the areas of mental fitness, self improvement, and self help that people are the most interested in – the areas they’re seeking the most help with and information about.  I have several self help and mental fitness blogs and websites and I don’t want to fill them with subjects I want to write about, I want to fill them with subjects people genuinely want (and need) to read.  That’s why I have contact forms on TMFC, Out of Bounds, and Self Help Daily – I want to know what’s on people’s minds.

Consistently, the following subjects are popular:

  • depression
  • anxiety
  • relationships
  • overcoming shyness
  • losing weight
  • public speaking
  • gaining self confidence

During the 3 hours of research, I found that depression and anxiety are amongst the most searched for topics in the world self improvement.  Last month, over 11,100,000 searches were performed on Google for “depression.”  Over 6,000,000 searches were performed for anxiety and countless others were performed for “depression help,” “depression and anxiety,” “overcoming depression,” and so on.

I had an idea what the findings would be, based upon the e-mail I receive and the replies on the contact forms. But, I have to say, I didn’t realize the numbers would be this high.  The thought of this many people feeling so down and so unhappy – to the point that they actively are searching for advice (like a cry out for help) – makes me profoundly sad.  It also makes me feel pretty helpless.  What can you do to reach out to so many people and let them know that life doesn’t have to be like this?  How can you, in essence, put a hand on their back and encourage them to hang on and dig deeper?

I guess the answer is the same answer that holds true for most things in life – you start somewhere and take it one step at a time. 

One post at a time.

Suffice to say, there will be plenty of upcoming posts involving depression, anxiety, sadness, happiness, overcoming the blues, the difference between the blues and depression, treatment options for clinical depression, books about depression, and so on.  I’ll still post a regular stream of articles and posts about mental fitness, brain games, relaxation, and our other favorite topics as well – they’ll just have a lot of company…  articles with one thing on their mind:  Reaching as many people as possible and giving them a greater quality of life and a larger number of smiles!

We’ll kick things off with a list of 10 Things You Might Not Know About Depression.

  • All of us experience the blues, feelings of anxiety, discouragement, and profound sadness throughout our lives. Many times people mis-label how they feel as depression.  This is a grave error and only makes things worse!  If you feel sad due to a recent traumatic experience (a death in the family, problems in a relationship or at work, a huge disappointment, financial problems, an empty nest…..), keep in mind that this is perfectly normal.  Feelings are a natural thing, even when they aren’t positive.  If something has affected your mood and your feelings, you simply have to ride it out and find ways to cope with your unhappiness or feelings of anxiety.  If, after time, you simply can’t find your way out of the pit or if (even after seeing a great movie or spending time with people who normally light up your world) you can’t seem to remember how to feel happy or “normal,” then seek help.  As with any health concern, never diagnose yourself Chief!
  • Of the estimated 17.5 million Americans who are affected by some form of depression, 9.2 million have major depression – also known as clinical depression. That’s a pretty intense number and I suppose the only positive we can take away from it is this:  At least people who suffer from depression know they aren’t alone – not even close.
  • Two-thirds of people suffering from depression do not seek necessary treatment. It’s obvious what this means, right?  2/3 of people with depression never get better…. only 1 in 3 allows themselves to have a life filled with the love, laughter, and happiness that they deserve.  Ony 1!
  • Of the people with clinical (major) depression who are proactive enough to seek help, 80%  significantly improve their lives. Hopefully the other 20 percent realize they aren’t getting the care they deserve and they keep looking until they do.
  • Women experience depression about twice as often as men.
  • Always remember that depression is a serious illness, it isn’t a sign of weakness or a personality flaw, any more than being diabetic means you lack character or strength!
  • Seasonal depression (SAD) is depression that occurs only at a certain time of the year. SAD, which is often called “the winter blues” usually occurs during winter, when the number of daylight hours is lower. Although it is predictable and understandable, it can be very severe. It’s compounded by the feelings of being “let down” emotionally after Christmas. So much time and effort goes into the holiday season that people feel a little bit of an emotional roller coaster after the festivities are over. Many people also greatly miss loved ones (who have either died or moved away) during this time. Given all of these factors, it’s a wonder SAD isn’t more prevalent than it is.
  • Bipolar disorder is a very interesting branch of depression. Bipolar Disorder is sometimes viewed as its own mental entity, as many people fail to realize that it is (at heart) depression with tricks up its sleeve.  Bipolar Disorder involves episodes of depression, usually quite severe, which alternate with episodes of extreme elation called mania.  Bipolar Disorder was once known as manic depression.  The depression that is associated with bipolar disorder, which is a sever mood disorder, is often referred to as bipolar depression.  People who suffer with Bipolar Disorder are privy to the type of emotional turmoil that most of us, thankfully, can’t even begin to imagine.   People with Bipolar disorder need to find the best doctor they possibly can and then they need to be as loyal to him/her as they are to their own spouse.  Going it alone with any type of depression is completely and utterly ridiculous (and dangerous) – but never more so than with Bipolar disorder.
  • The biggest barriers to overcoming depression? Realizing you are depressed, seeking help, and doing what the doctor says.
  • Teen depression can be very hard to diagnose. After all, so many things go on with a teenager that they’re often written off as adolescent hormones. If the feelings or symptoms seem to be more intense than what other kids their age are going through, it might be time to find out why.

The Symptoms of Depression

  • a persistent sadness
  • feelings of being anxious or on edge
  • feeling empty or “not yourself”
  • sleeping too little
  • sleeping too much
  • reduced appetite and weight loss
  • increased appetite and weight gain
  • loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed
  • restlessness
  • feelings of irritability
  • a tendency to snap at people for no reason
  • a tendency to tear up often
  • persistent physical symptoms and ailments that don’t respond to treatment (such as headaches, chronic pain, or constipation and other digestive disorders)
  • difficulty concentrating
  • inability to make even simple decisions
  • fatigue and loss of energy
  • feeling guilty, hopeless or worthless
  • wanting to be alone and finding ways to be alone
  • thoughts of death or suicide

Again, there are many times during our life when we feel most of the feelings named above – there are even very low times in our lives when we may feel a combination. For example, if you’re going through a personal crisis (death of a loved one, divorce, strained family relationships….), you will cry more often, you will want to spend more times alone (trying to wrap your mind around everything), you will lose interest in things that once interested and even delighted you, and you may feel guilty or hopeless. Your sleep and eating patterns will also be affected. The difference is, most of us come out of this valley – often stronger than before! – but people who suffer with depression simply can’t find the way out of the valley by themselves.

What Causes Depression?

  • Biological Factors. People who suffer with depression may simply have an excess of or a deficiency in certain brain chemicals.
  • Cognitive Factors. People who tend to think negatively and possess very low self-esteem are more likely to develop clinical depression.
  • Gender. Women experience clinical depression nearly twice as often as men. Experts point to hormone problems as a factor.
  • Co-occurrence With Other Diseases. Depression is more likely to occur along with certain illnesses, such as heart disease, cancer, Parkinson’s disease, Epilepsy, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, respiratory disease, and hormonal disorders.  Understandable, right? Any type of disease brings extra stress, worry, fear, and burdens into a person’s life.
  • Medications. Some medications have depression as a side-effect.  Needless to say, if you ever take any medication that throws you into an extended period of sadness, speak to your doctor about alternative medication.
  • Genetic Factors. A family history of clinical depression increases the risk for developing the illness.
  • Situational or Life Factors. Difficult life events, including divorce, financial problems or the death of a loved one can contribute to clinical depression.

If you believe that you (or someone you love) may have depression or seem to be headed in that direction, please don’t expect it to get better on its own and never, ever think you have to just live with it.  Your tomorrows can be brighter than today but you have to be proactive and determined.

***********************

Here’s something I found pretty interesting: There’s a direct correlation between fish consumption and lowered levels of depression. A glance around the world really drives the fact home:  The United States has 24 times the incidence of depression as Japan, for example, where fish intake is much higher.  24 times!

How To Cope With Your Fears And Stress

by Joi

I’m honored to present a guest post by a very talented author, Stanley Popovich.  Be sure to check out his website, linked at the end of the article.

How to Cope with Fear, Anxieties, and Stress.

How to Cope With Your Fears and Stress

By: Stanley Popovich

Everybody deals with anxiety and depression, however some people have a hard time in managing it. As a result, here is a brief list of techniques that a person can use to help manage their most persistent fears and every day anxieties.

The first thing that you need to do is to determine what is the source of your fears. Determine what is making you so anxious and fearful. Once you determine the source of your fears, the next step is to manage it.

Sometimes we get stressed out when everything happens all at once. When this happens, a person should take a deep breath and try to find something to do for a few minutes to get their mind off of the problem. A person could get some fresh air or do an activity that will give them a fresh perspective on things.

A person should visualize a red stop sign in their mind when they encounter a fear provoking thought. When the negative thought comes, a person should think of a red stop sign that serves as a reminder to stop focusing on that thought and to think of something else. A person can then try to think of something positive to replace the negative thought.

Another technique that is very helpful is to have a small notebook of positive statements that makes you feel good. Whenever you come across an affirmation that makes you feel good, write it down in a small notebook that you can carry around with you in your pocket. Whenever you feel depressed or frustrated, open up your small notebook and read those statements. This will help to manage your negative thinking.

Learn to take it one day at a time. Instead of worrying about how you will get through the rest of the week, try to focus on today. Each day can provide us with different opportunities to learn new things and that includes learning how to deal with your problems. You never know when the answers you are looking for will come to your doorstep. We may be ninety-nine percent correct in predicting the future, but all it takes is for that one percent to make a world of difference.

Take advantage of the help that is available around you. If possible, talk to a professional who can help you manage your depression and anxieties. They will be able to provide you with additional advice and insights on how to deal with your current problem. By talking to a professional, a person will be helping themselves in the long run because they will become better able to deal with their problems in the future. Remember that it never hurts to ask for help.

Dealing with our persistent fears is not easy. Remember that all you can do is to do your best each day, hope for the best, and take things in stride. Patience, persistence, education, and being committed in trying to solve your problem will go along way in fixing your problems.

BIOGRAPHY:
Stan Popovich is the author of “A Layman’s Guide to Managing Fear Using Psychology, Christianity and Non Resistant Methods” – an easy to read book that presents a general overview of techniques that are effective in managing persistent fears and anxieties. For additional information go to: http://www.managingfear.com/


The Extreme Dangers of Labeling Yourself With Mental Disorders

by Joi

Getting rid of dangerous labels

Many words in the mental fitness field are overused and misused.  Take, for example, depressed and depression.   These words, when used properly, describe a feeling that is completely overwhelming and generally horrific.  Depression is a serious condition that often requires a doctor’s treatment. Yet, most people use them to describe how they feel after their favorite sport’s team loses a game, after a breakup, or when having to move to a new city.  The same can be said of the word anxiety.  People also throw this word around loosely – but, clinically speaking, it can be very serious.  Clinical anxiety can disrupt one’s life as much as any illness.

While I can’t say for certain, since I don’t have first-hand experience, I would imagine that individuals who do live with actual anxiety and depression would be greatly annoyed with everyone’s misuse of the terms.   To a lesser degree, as an asthmatic who has often fought (literally) for breath, I’ve often wanted to say something when someone gets halfway through a smoker’s cough and bemoans their “asthma.”

You can certainly add Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Attention Deficit Disorder and paranoia to the list of mental health disorders that are used far too often.  It seems that people want to give a grand name to even the smallest feelings and issues, but sometimes they’re just that – feelings and issues. Feelings and issues that will pass, unless the individual invites them to stick around by feeding them and naming them.

When you feel down, make a point to say JUST THAT:  I feel down.  When something negative rolls into your life, label it as the intruder, not yourself as its victim. It’s important to keep the negative attention on the occurrence and not the individual.  After all, the occurrence will pass, or at least lessen it’s grip, in time.

Never, ever, ever sign on to be anyone or anything’s victim.  Bad things happen each and every day – to all of us.  We all know disappointment, discouragement, and even disaster.  But few of us, thankfully, actually know the depths of depression.

More times than not, those who say, “I am so depressed.” are actually simply experiencing a depressing situation – and the cloud will lift in a day or two.  Those who try to give more weight to the fact that they are simply a nervous type person will often refer to their anxiety disorder.  Yet if they had to trade bodies with an individual who actually lives with an anxiety disorder, they’d RUN back to their own body.

To me, the dangers of throwing these terms around too loosely are the following:

  1. First of all, I believe it lessens a lot of people’s understanding of and compassion for those who truly suffer from mental or emotional disorders.  Take for example a woman who, rightfully, seeks a doctor’s help for her severe depression.  Another person may scoff and say, “I handle my own depression.”  It’s highly doubtful that she even has mild depression, let alone severe depression.
  2. Labeling yourself with a disorder is dangerous.  What we think of ourselves, for better or worse, affects who we actually are.  If one tends to paint themselves, consistently, in a negative way – they’ll begin to live up (or down) to their expectations.
  3. Third of all, labeling yourself with an improper mental disorder can keep you from seeing what the REAL problem is.  I knew a woman once who was convinced that she suffered from depression.  Any and all symptoms she experienced, she chalked up to her depression.  At a routine doctor’s visit, it was discovered that she was diabetic and had been for some time.  The doctors were amazed that she was even alive and that she had not gone into a diabetic coma before being diagnosed.  They told her that if it had been caught earlier, she could have been treated differently and would not require daily shots of insulin.  No one will ever know how much damage was done to her body during the time she did not seek help for the way she felt.  Most of her doctors believe that the damage to her heart during this time was profound.  Ironically, a few years ago, it was heart failure which killed her.
  4. Lastly, it may sound harsh, but many people use these terms as crutches.  What they actually ARE  isn’t terribly appealing, so they simply grab an “excusable, respectable” term from the medial field and think they’re excused for their behavior.  Yes, many people have anxiety disorders – but some are just nervous and drink too much coffee!  Absolutely there are some people who have personality disorders, but some are just loud mouthed bullies who never left their emotional schoolyard.  Granted, some individuals suffer from the legitimate attention deficit disorder, but many are simply lazy and undisciplined.   Which do you think is easier for a parent to live with?

When it comes to using these disorders, especially depression, as a crutch, many people fall into the rut.  It takes will power and strength to pull yourself up out of a rut.  It’s simply easier to lie in the rut feeling sorry for yourself and excusing your behavior.  But it’s also extremely dangerous – for the individual as well as others.  Realize that some people simply feel sadness, tension, anxiety, and anger to different degrees than others.  This doesn’t make them ill, it makes them an individual.

Not every person who blows things out of proportion and has temper tantrums is manic depressive or has a personality disorder.  They could just have a nasty temper!   Not everyone who cries easily is depressed, she could simply feel things more than others feel them.  That, if you ask me, isn’t always a bad thing.  If a child has trouble concentrating in the classroom, he may simply need to spend more time away from the television or video games.

Remember the importance of words, especially the words we call ourselves and others.  I’d love for people to use the following:

  • She has a horrible temper instead of She’s a psycho.
  • I feel down today instead of I’m depressed.
  • This is my son, John, sometimes he has trouble sitting still instead of  This is John, he’s hyperactive.
  • I need to help my daughter with her attention span instead of  My daughter has ADD.
  • That was a nerve wrecking experience instead of I’m having an anxiety attack.

Bottom line:   Labels stick – so be very, very careful how you label yourself and twice as careful how you label your child. Ask yourself the hard questions.  Is it a mental disorder or could it simply be a lack of discipline, focus, and will power?  Have you succumbed to a label you stuck on a long time ago?  If so, why not take it off today?!

I’ve got a new label for you:  FIGHTER.  You’ve been through 8 long rounds, but you’re willing to get up off the mat, dust yourself off, and get back on your feet.  You’ve learned from your mistakes and want to see the view from this position from now on.  The view from the mat sucked fermented cabbage through a straw.

You won’t be seeing the mat again anytime soon.  After all, you’re a fighter.  The label says so.

Make each moment count double,
~ Joi

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