Depression: what it’s like and how it’s treated
Axia College
Kristin Allen
Imagine for a moment that you are in your bedroom. You are in you pajamas, warm and safe. The only problem with this is that it is two o’clock in the afternoon and you been in the same room for 5 days in a row. The reason being is that in your mind this is the only place to feel comfortable, you have no energy or motivation and you can’t focus on anything but your own sadness, not even your own child. This is one of many faces of depression. Depression can lead to extreme sadness and hopelessness or even irritation and anger. People who live with depression often have a hard time functioning in everyday life because depression is a condition that can consume your entire life.
I speak from personal experience. Diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder, I have firsthand knowledge of just how debilitating depression can be. It is often a common misconception that depression is simply all in your head and that the person suffering from the condition should “just get over it”, for a person with a major depressive disorder this concept is impossible. In fact depression can go on for weeks and sometimes even months before a person suffering from the condition realizes that they may have a problem.
When help from a medical professional is finally sought, whether voluntarily or because the person suffering has caused harm to themselves, it is often a long trying process. Meetings with various professionals can lead to frustration because it may take time to find a doctor that is the right fit for the individual. Finding a mental health professional is different from finding a general physician, often time’s patient and doctors will clash over causes of the person’s depression and treatment.
When help from a professional is finally found, the mental health physician will most likely want to try a moods stabilizing medication along with therapy to start off with. This can be another...