Gender Differences With Depression
February 29, 2008
Men and Women Suffer Differently
Research and clinical evidence and research studies show that while both women and men can develop symptoms of depression, they often suffer from Depression differently and may have different ways of coping with the symptoms. Indicators of Depression also can appear totally different between the Genders. Researchers at MeloncholyWaves.Com have identified the following differences: Read more
Rough Childhood Can “Jump-Start” Depression
February 27, 2008
Persons who become clinically depressed have generally experienced more severe difficulties in childhood than those who do not become depressed. Indicators include mild or severe childhood trauma,such as sexual or physical abuse, a turbulent upbringing, separation from a parent, or mental illness in a parent. Researchers are now saying that a problematic childhood may trigger an early-onset of depression (first episode occurs before age 20). The most significant event that seems to be related to clinical depression is separation from or death of a parent before the age of 11.
It is not clear just how a difficult childhood can result in adult depression, but there are a few theories. One theory suggests that children who experience great unhappiness growing up have a harder time adjusting to changes in their life such as adolescence and the new roles of adulthood. Another theory is that these children may either lack appropriate emotional development or they become emotionally damaged making them vulnerable to developing depression. Experiencing great difficulties as children, these individuals may be more likely to have low self-esteem, feel powerless, and become dependent on others to make them feel good about themselves. These kinds of traits may increase a person’s susceptibility to depression. Still another theory has to do with the developing brain of a young child. Early experiences may affect the development of the limbic system in the brain. If a child experiences great emotional distress, this could affect his or her ability to adapt to new environments and regulate emotions.
During World War II there were a number of children who were separated from their mothers. It was noticed that these children became depressed after going through several stages of grief. First, the children cried strenuously for their mothers. Then the children became very agitated. Afterwards, they became despondent and still. Lastly, they became very withdrawn. This severe reaction to losing their mothers is known as anaclitic depression. This same type of reaction to separation has been observed in studies with monkeys. In these studies, the monkeys secreted higher amounts of cortisol (a stress hormone) during the earlier stages of grief. It was found that the more cortisol that was released into the blood, the more intense the monkey’s depression became later on. In approximately one-half of all depressed humans there are high levels of cortisol in the blood.
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Is Your Employee Suffering From Depression?
February 26, 2008
Approaching Employee Depression
Depression ranks third in the hierarchy of workplace problems. It is overshadowed only by family crisis and stress. No two employees experience depression in the same way. Symptoms vary in severity and duration in different people. In the workplace, symptoms of depression Read more
244 Famous People Suffering From Depression
February 26, 2008
You Are Not Alone! Many talented, creative successful people have suffered from depression. This list is only a fraction of celebrities with some form of the condition of depression
Famous People Who Have Suffered from Depression or Manic-Depression:
- Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, astronaut
- Louie Anderson, comedian, actor
- Ann-Margaret, actress
- Alexander the Great, king
- Hans Christian Anderson, author
- Tai Babilonia, figureskater
- Roseanne Barr, actress
- Drew Barrymore, actress
- James M. Barrie, writer
- Rona Barrett, columnist
- Charles Baudelaire, poet
- Shelley Beattie, athlete and artist
- Ned Beatty, actor
- Samuel Becket, writer
- Ludwig von Beethoven, composer
- Menachem Begin, Prime Minister of Israel
- Brendan Behan, poet
- Irving Berlin, composer
- John Berryman, poet
- William Blake, poet
- Napoleon Bonaparte, emperor
- Kjell Magne Bondevik, Prime Minister of Norway
- Marlon Brando, actor
- Art Buchwald, political humorist
- Robert Burns, poet
- Robert Burton, writer
- Tim Burton, artist, movie director
- Willie Burton, basketball player
- Barbara Bush, former First Lady
- Lord Byron, poet
- Truman Capote, writer
- Drew Carey, actor and comedian
- Jim Carrey, actor and comedian
- Dick Cavett, broadcaster
- Ray Charles, R&B performer
- Lawton Chiles, former governor of Florida
- Frederic Chopin, composer
- Winston Churchill, British prime minister
- Eric Clapton, blues-rock musician
- Dick Clark, entertainer (American Bandstand)
- Rosemary Clooney, singer
- Kurt Cobain, rock star
- Tyrus Cobb, athlete
- Leonard Cohen, poet and singer
- Natalie Cole, singer
- Garnet Coleman, Texas legislator
- Samuel Coleridge, poet
- Judy Collins, musician, writer
- Shawn Colvin, musician
- Jeff Conaway, actor
- Pat Conroy, writer
- Calvin Coolidge, U.S. president
- Francis Ford Coppola, director
- Patricia Cornwell, writer
- Noel Coward, composer
- William Cowper, poet
- Kathy Cronkite, writer
- Dennis Crosby, actor
- Sheryl Crow, singer and rock musician
- John Daly, athlete (golf)
- Rodney Dangerfield, comedian
- Charles Darwin, explorer and scientist
- David, Israeli King
- Sandra Dee, actor
- Ellen DeGeneres, comedienne, actor
- John Denver, singer and actor
- Diana, Princess of Wales
- Paolo DiCanio, athlete (soccer)
- Charles Dickens, writer
- Emily Dickenson, poet
- Scott Donie, Olympic athlete (diving)
- Theodore Dostoevski, writer
- Tony Dow, actor, producer, director
- Richard Dreyfuss, actor
- Kitty Dukakis, former First Lady, Mass.
- Patty Duke, actress
- Thomas Eagleton, lawyer, U.S. Senator
- Thomas Edison, inventor
- T.S. Eliot, poet
- Queen Elizabeth I of England
- Ralph Waldo Emerson, writer
- Philo T. Farnsworth, inventor of television
- William Faulkner, writer
- Carrie Fisher, actress and writer
- F. Scott Fitzgerald, writer
- Larry Flynt, magazine publisher
- Betty Ford, former First Lady
- Harrison Ford, actor
- Steven Foster, writer
- Michel Foucault, writer, philosopher
- Connie Francis, entertainer
- Andre Franquin, 1924-1997, cartoonist
- Sigmund Freud, psychiatrist
- Peter Gabriel, rock star
- Judy Garland, singer, actor
- James Garner, actor
- Paul Gauguin, artist
- Harold Geneen, executive, ITT Industries
- King George III of England
- Kendall Gill, athlete (basketball)
- Dwight Gooden, baseball player
- Tipper Gore, wife of U.S. Vice-President
- Francisco de Goya, painter
- Phil Graham, owner, Washington Post
- Shecky Greene, comedian
- Linda Hamilton, actress
- Georg Frederich Handel, composer
- Ernest Hemingway, writer
- Margaux Hemingway, actor
- Audrey Hepburn, actress
- King Herod, Biblical figure
- Sir Anthony Hopkins, actor
- Howard Hughes, industrialist
- Victor Hugo, author
- Andrew Jackson, U.S. President
- Janet Jackson, singer
- Thomas Jefferson, U.S. President
- Jim Jenson, CBS News
- Jeremiah, Biblical figure
- Joan of Arc, French leader
- Job, Biblical figure
- Billy Joel, musician, composer
- Elton John, musician, composer
- Ashley Judd, actor
- Franz Kafka, writer
- Karen Kain, prima ballerina
- Danny Kaye, entertainer
- John Keats, writer
- Margot Kidder, actress
- Larry King, talkshow host
- Jessica Lange, actor
- Robert E. Lee, U.S. general
- Vivian Leigh, actress
- John Lennon, musician
- Abraham Lincoln, U.S. President
- Greg Louganis, U.S. diver and Olympic gold medallist
- Courtney Love, musician
- Robert Lowell, poet
- Salvador Luria, bacterial geneticist
- Martin Luther, Protestant leader
- Imelda Marcos, Philippine dictator’s wife
- Robert McFarlane, former United States National Security Adviser
- Rod McKuen, writer, poet, producer
- Sarah McLachlan, singer, Lilith Fair creator
- Kristy McNichol, actress
- Herman Melville, writer
- Burgess Meredith, actor
- Robert Merrill, musician, lyricist
- Paul Merton, British comedian
- Michelangelo, Italian artist
- Spike Milligan, comic actor, writer
- Carmen Miranda, actor
- Claude Monet, artist
- Marilyn Monroe, actor
- Alanis Morissette, Canadian singer
- Michelangelo, artist
- John Stuart Mill, writer
- Edna St. Vincent Millay, poet
- Kate Millet, writer and feminist
- Spike Milligan, humourist
- John Milton, poet
- J.P. Morgan, industrialist
- Benito Mussolini, Italian dictator
- Ilie Natase, tennis player, politician
- Ralph Nader, U.S. consumer rights advocate
- Nebuchadnezzar, Biblical figure
- Sir Isaac Newton, physicist
- Florence Nightingale, British nurse
- Vaslav Nijinksy, ballet dancer
- Richard Nixon, U.S. president
- Sinead O’Connor, musician
- Georgia O’Keeffe, painter
- John Ogden, pianist
- Laurence Olivier, actor
- Ozzie Osborne, rock star
- Donny Osmond, musician
- Marie Osmond, musician
- Dolly Parton, singer
- Boris Pasternak, writer
- John Pastorius, composer
- George Patton, soldier
- Pierre Peladeau, publisher
- Teddy Pendergrass, musician
- Jimmie Piersall, baseball player
- William Pitt, Prime Minister
- Edgar Allen Poe, writer
- Jackson Pollock, artist
- Cole Porter, composer
- Alma Powell, wife of Gen. Colin Powell
- Charlie Pride, country singer
- Sergey Rachmaninoff, composer
- Bonnie Raitt, singer
- Mac Rebennack (Dr. John), musician
- Lou Reed, singer
- Jeannie C. Riley, singer
- Rainer Maria Rilke, poet
- Joan Rivers, comedian
- Norman Rockwell, artist
- Theodore Roosevelt, U.S. President
- Axl Rose, rock star
- Dante Rossetti, poet and painter
- Gioacchimo Rossini, composer
- Philip Roth, writer
- Mark Rothko, artist
- Winona Ryder, actor
- Yves Saint Laurent, fashion designer
- Charles Schulz, cartoonist (Peanuts)
- Mary Shelley, author
- William Tecumseh Sherman, general
- Paul Simon, composer, musician
- Alonzo Spellman, athlete (football)
- Rod Steiger, actor
- George Stephanopoulos, political advisor
- Sting, singer and musician
- Teresa Stratas, opera singer
- Darryl Strawberry, baseball player
- James Taylor, singer and musician
- P.I. Tchaikovsky, composer
- Alfred, Lord Tennyson, poet
- Dylan Thomas, poet
- Leo Tolstoy, writer
- Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, artist
- Spencer Tracy, actor
- Ted Turner, founder, CNN Network
- Mark Twain, author
- Mike Tyson, prizefighter
- Jean-Claude Van Damme, actor
- Vincent Van Gogh, artist
- Victoria, British Queen
- Kurt Vonnegut, writer
- Mike Wallace, broadcaster
- George Washington, U.S. President
- Damon Wayans, comedian, actor, writer, director, producer
- Walt Whitman, poet
- Robin Williams, actor
- Tennessee Williams, playwright
- Brian Wilson, rockstar (Beach Boys)
- Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous
- Jonathan Winters, comedian
- Natalie Wood, actor
- Virginia Woolf, writer
- Tammy Wynette, singer
- Boris Yeltsin, former President, Russia
- Robert Young, actor
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Be Aware Of These Depression Indicators
February 26, 2008
Indicators of Depression
The most well-known list of depression indicators includes the following and these indicators of depression ‘count’ when they last more than 2 weeks:
- Unrelenting sad, anxious or “empty” mood - hopelessness
- Sleeping too little, interrupted sleep/ awakening or sleeping too much
- Reduced appetite and/or weight loss, or increased appetite and weight gain
- Loss of interest in activities once enjoyed, including sex
- Inability to find interest in new activities or hobbies/relationships
- Edginess and/or irritability - anger that is unwarranted or inappropriately expressed
- Unyielding physical symptoms that don’t respond to treatment (headaches, chronic pain or digestive disorders)
- Difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decision(feeling of disorientedness)
- Fatigue or loss of energy(sluggish, not able to ‘get-going’)
- Feeling guilty, hopeless or worthless (beating yourself up over past behavior)
- Thoughts of suicide or death, sometimes including ruminating ones of “how I would
do it”
If you experience five or more of these symptoms, it may be time to consult a professional - ask your doctor.
Getting Help is important!
Depression is a chronic, progressive disease with many remissions. Without treatment, exponential collateral damage can occur. Many people who are depressed think they may be labeled as weak or “complaining” if they reveal their suffering. Depression must be recognized as a real medical condition that is serious; even deadly. It is nothing to be ashamed of, and can be treated appropriately in most cases.
Take the stigma out of Depression and help yourself or others that may be suffering today!
Sponsored by: ConqueringStress.Com - an awesome resource for learning how to get rid of depression and anxiety once and for all!
Which Type(s) Of Depression Haunt You?
February 26, 2008
Types of Depression
There are different types of depression. Often they are distinguished by their presenting features, duration and severity of symptoms. Most kinds of depression are defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), an American Psychiatric Association publication which describes the standard criteria for different types of psychiatric disorders.
The following kinds of depression are distinct depressive disorders, some of which are described in the DSM. A common criteria is that their symptoms either cause 1) significant distress or 2) impair one’s functioning (e.g. work, school, relationships). Also, these depressive symptoms are not caused by a medical condition or substance (e.g. medication, drug).
- Major Depression also known as Clinical Depression
- Major Depression is characterized by a feeling of profound and constant hopelessness and despair.
Signs of this disorder may include:
1. significant weight loss / weight gain or decrease / increase in appetite
2. difficulty sleeping or increase in sleeping
3. excessive movement or slowing down associated with mental tension (observed by others)
4. fatigue or loss of energy
5. feeling worthless or excessive guilt
6. difficulty thinking, concentrating or making decisions
7. repeatedly thinking about death or suicide, trying to attempt suicide or having a specific plan
to commit suicide
Currently, Major Depression Disorder (MDD) is the leading cause of disability in the United States. In the United States it is the cause of more than two-thirds of all suicides each year. Persons with Major Depression exhibit a combination of symptoms that interfere with the ability to work, study, sleep, eat and enjoy once pleasurable activities. Such a disabling episode of depression may occur only once but more commonly occurs several times in a lifetime.
Most people associate depression with adults, but it also occurs in children and the elderly — two populations in which it often goes undiagnosed and untreated.
Approximately twice as many women as men suffer from major depression. This is partially because of hormonal changes throughout a woman’s life: During menstruation, pregnancy, miscarriage and menopause. This stat may be misleading, though, as women are more likely to report their depression, and Men tend to conceal or mask their depression-indicators.
Men who suffer from major depression are less likely to seek help or even talk about their experience. Signs of depression in men are more often irritability, anger, or drug and alcohol abuse. Many men do not know that the underlying condition is actually Major Depression.
The Cost?
Well, in monetary terms, studies show that direct and indirect costs of depression in the United States are more than $43 billion annually. Of course, this does not include the peripheral emotional “costs”, or impact on loved ones and employers.
Dysthymic Disorder
A milder yet more enduring type of major depression. People with dysthymia may appear to be chronically mildly depressed to the point that it seems to be a part of their personality. When a person finally seeks treatment for dysthymia, it is not uncommon that he/she has struggled with this condition for a number of years.
Signs of this condition may include:
1. decrease or increase in eating
2. difficulty sleeping or increase in sleeping
3. low energy or fatigue
4. low self-esteem
5. difficulty concentrating or making decisions
6. feeling hopeless
Manic Depression, also called Bipolar Disorder
Also known as manic-depression or manic-depressive disorder. This condition is characterized by mood that alternates between periods of depression and periods of elation and excitable behavior known as mania (see symptoms below). For people who have bipolar disorder, the depressions can be severe and the mania can seriously impair one’s normal judgment. When manic, a person is prone towards reckless and inappropriate behavior such as engaging in wild spending sprees or having promiscuous sex. He or she may not be able to realize the harm of his/her behavior and may even lose touch with reality.
Signs of this condition may include:
1. inflated self-esteem or self-importance
2. decreased need for sleep
3. more talkative than usual or compelled to keep talking
4. experiencing racing thoughts or ideas
5. easily distracted
6. increase in goal-oriented activity (social, work, school, sexual) or excessive movement
7. excessive involvement in potentially risky pleasurable behavior (e.g. over spending, careless
sexual activity, unwise business investments)
Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder - This is an uncommon type of depression affecting a small percentage of menstruating women. It is a cyclical condition in which women may feel depressed and irritable for one or two weeks before their menstrual period each month.
Post Partum Depression – Major depressive episode that occurs after having a baby. Depressive symptoms usually begin within four weeks of giving birth and can vary in intensity and duration.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) – A type of depressive disorder which is characterized by episodes of major depression which reoccur at a specific time of the year (e.g. fall, winter). In the past two years, depressive periods occur at least two times without any episodes that occur at a different time.
Chronic Depression - Major depressive episode that lasts for at least two years.
Double Depression - Someone who has Dysthymia (chronic mild depression) and also experiences a major depressive episode (more severe depressive symptoms lasting at least two weeks). See above for definitions of these two categories of depression.
Endogenous Depression – Endogenous means from within the body. This type of depression is defined as feeling depressed for no apparent reason.
Situational Depression or Reactive - Depressive symptoms developing in response to a specific stressful situation or event (e.g. job loss, relationship ending). These symptoms occur within 3 months of the stressor and lasts no longer than 6 months after the stressor (or its consequences) has ended. Depression symptoms cause significant distress or impairs usual functioning (e.g. relationships, work, school) and do not meet the criteria for major depressive disorder.
Agitated Depression – Kind of major depressive disorder which is characterized by agitation such as physical and emotional restlessness, irritability and insomnia, which is the opposite of many depressed individuals who have low energy and feel slowed down physically and mentally.
Psychotic Depression – Major depressive episode with psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations (e.g. hearing voices), delusions (false beliefs).
Melancholic Depression (Sub-type of Major Depressive Disorder) - Main features of this kind of depression include either a loss of pleasure in virtually all activities or mood does not temporarily improve in response to a positive event. Also, three (or more) of the following are present: Depressed mood that has a distinct quality and different from feeling depressed when grieving)
1. Depression is consistently worse in the morning
2. Waking up earlier than usual (at last 2 hours)
3. Noticeable excessive movement or slowing down
4. Significant decrease in appetite or weight loss
5. Feeling excessive or inappropriate guilt
Catatonic Depression – This type of depression is characterized by at least two of the following:
1. Loss of voluntary movement and inability to react to one’s environment
2. Excessive movement (purposeless and not in response to one’s environment)
3. Extreme resistance to instructions/suggestions or unable/unwilling to speak
4. Odd or inappropriate voluntary movements or postures
5. Involuntarily repeating someone’s words or movements in a meaningless way
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Moving from Depression……….Into Expression
February 26, 2008
Using Creativity To Beat Depression
One way of combating depression is through creative expression. As part of a holistic approach to putting one’s depression into remission, expression of emotions, through artwork, craft-making, journaling, music and dance, can help to strengthen well-being and keep aspects of depression at bay. Read more
