What is depression?
Depression is a quite a common mental health issue it is classed as a mood disorder. It involves a state of low mood, it can last for weeks or even months. Many things can lead to depression like stress, family history of mental health and also having a baby. Depression can have a major effect on your life effecting daily activities as well as your work and family life. It affects how you think, feel and act. It involves feelings of sadness as well as feeling unhappy.
Causes of depression
There are several different things that can cause someone to suffer from depression. Causes ranging from grief, childhood experiences and sometimes people find they don’t even have an obvious reason. Finding out if there may be a reason you are suffering of depression can be the first step in treating the condition There isn’t an exact reason as to why some are more at risk of suffering from depression. There are some causes as to why you may be suffering from depression these are included below.
Child hood experiences
Experiencing trauma during your child hood could lead to depression when you become an adult. Children that were exposed to things like abuse and neglect could now be affected as an adult. It may have impacted their ability to control their emotions. Experiencing trauma in your past can make you vulnerable to depression. Also child hood experiences could have affected your self-esteem and how you deal with situations in your adult life. Some childhood experiences that have affected you may be,
- Abuse, this could be physical, emotional or even sexual
- Experiencing neglect
- Living in an unstable environment
- Witnessing domestic violence
- Family member having a critical illness
Grief
Loosing a family member or friend is never easy and a lot of people struggle to come to terms with it. Everyone griefs different but for some it can lead to a depressive state. Losing someone you were very close with and now they are gone it can lead to feelings of loneliness therefore as a result it can cause some to fall into depression. Some say that grief left them feeling as if they had no meaning to life. It can be a very difficult life experience that can have a major effect on your mental health.
Certain medications
There are some medications that can have cause depression, this would be one of the side effects. It can be a cause of certain medications brings on depression or that you already had it but the medication made it worse. Always consult your doctor if you think this is the case. Also take threw the symptoms if you’re not sure on them.
Main life events
Some major life events can cause depression things like getting new job or getting married. These can be very daunting for some and cause stress that then leads to depression. Other life events that can cause depression,
- Having a baby
- Moving house
- Divorce
- Losing your job
- Retiring
- Break-ups
Illnesses
Having an illness especially one that majorly affects your day-to-day life can trigger depression. People that suffer from chronic conditions are likely to develop depression. This is because living with their illness takes a toll on their mental health. Illnesses can cause you to feel loads of different emotions including sadness, worry and lonely. It can be hard for some to come to terms.
Drugs and alcohol abuse
People that are suffering from addiction often also suffer from feelings of sadness, feeling hopeless and feeling lonely. These feelings are often also associated with depression along with other symptoms. Alcohol can lower your levels of serotonin, this is not very good as it is needed to balance out your mood. Drugs affect a part of your brain as a result it can you unable to regulate your feelings emotions. This can lead you to developing depression.
Family History
When you have family members that often suffer from depression this can lead to you having it to. For example, if both of your parents suffer from depression this can put you at higher risk of having it yourself.
Stress
Dealing with stress for long periods of time can cause depression in some people. When you allow the stress to take over it can cause disruption to the brain therefore it can lead to struggles with depression. Those who are dealing with stress and stressful situations are more likely to struggle with their mental health.
Bullying
Being bullied can have negative effects on your overall mental health therefore making you at risk of struggling with depression. It can cause you to lack self-worth and knock your confidence. It can leave you feeling helpless and can actually leave you feeling worthless. Being bullied can be a major concern in causing depression, this could be happening in school or within the work place.
Abuse
Going threw or having been through different types of abuse can leave people depressed. Abuse like being sexual or physical abuse can lower your self-esteem as a result. It can affect your life like not wanting to leave the house this then negatively affects your mental health. Other abuses like domestic violence can also be a factor in causing depression. Abuse leaves people feeling all sorts of negative emotions.
Unemployment
Unemployment can also put you at risk of developing depression as it can leave you feeling lonely as well as feeling unattached from the world. It affects your self-worth and can also cause people to feel worthless. This is why it can cause depression. Not only can it make you feel lonely some say it makes them feel as though they are not important. Having a job allows opportunities to socialise and build confidence so without that is can be a struggle for some.
Age
Everyone goes through different stages of their life at different ages. Age can be a risk factor for causing depression not for all people but for some. The risk can be higher for depression in elderly people. This can be for a lot of reasons maybe they are feeling regret about the past. Thinking about your past and what you did not achieve can make you feel depressed.
