Mood and Anxiety Disorders

Mood and Anxiety Disorders

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Mood and Anxiety Disorders

Depression

This mood disorder is characterized by a consistent feeling of sadness, grief, and being disinterested. Depressive disorder or clinical depression are other terms used to express the condition. Depression interferes with individual thinking, feeling, and behavior, resulting in varied emotional and physical difficulties. People experiencing depression often have trouble kicking their day-to-day activities, not to mention the extreme may mean a person ending his/her life, as nothing is worth living for (Zisook, Pg. 2004). It is not uncommon to feel low seldomly; however, having a feeling of sadness most of the time might end up causing a clinical depression, thus interfering with your everyday life. The condition is treatable by medicine, therapy consultation, or even changing one’s lifestyle. Depression occurs in different types, and the life events and brain chemistry influence a person’s depression. Irrespective of the cause, it is a prerequisite for a person to contact the doctor to confirm your mental health.

A major depressive disorder is often associated with feeling depressed for most of one’s life and daily activities. The symptoms involved are mostly guilt-tripping, suicidal thoughts, fatigue, lack of concentration, insomnia, restlessness, weight loss or gain, loss of interest, among others (Zisook, Pg. 2004). In most instances, doctors and therapists diagnose a person with major depression by associating having five or more depression symptoms for two weeks or more. If the patient is experiencing one of the symptoms, it can be diagnosed with either a depressed mood or interest loss. In numerous cases, therapists assist patients suffering from depression through the conduction of interview sessions. The sessions advance to treatment and counseling, where the patient becomes more open to the therapist about his/her problems. Eventually, although it may take some time or even fail to work, those mental health specialists help to find common ground by coming up with ways to manage a person’s depression. Antidepressants can as well be used in the treatment of depression. In instances where the medication fails, either electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) or Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation can be prescribed to a patient. ECT involves the use of electrical pulses, while rTMS uses magnetic waves to stimulate specific parts of the brain activities.

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental condition that often results from horrific events that a person suffering might have witnessed or experienced. Such occasions might include war, sexual harassment, rape, death threats, serious injuries, terrorist attacks, natural disasters, among others. Related symptoms may involve uncontrollable flashbacks about the incidents, nightmares and severe anxiety. The vast majority of the people experiencing traumatic events might find it challenging to adapt and coping, although, as time lapses, not to mention proper self-care influences the recovery of a person (Javidi & Yadollahie, 2012). If the symptoms persist for months or even years, leading the inability to execute someone’s daily activities, they are often diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. Effective treatment of PTSD symptoms serves to reduce symptoms while improving the functionality of a person significantly.

The symptoms of PTSD may begin one month after the traumatic incident has happened; however, there are cases where symptoms appear a few years after the traumatic event. The symptoms are somewhat problematic when it comes to the social life of a person involved. Perhaps, even interfering with someone’s ability to execute daily routine chores. Over time, these symptoms vary from person to person as they are categorized as either intrusive memories, avoidance, arousal symptoms, and negative thoughts on oneself. The intensity of PTSD symptoms may vary as time goes. Generally, a person might experience more PTSD symptoms due to life stresses, or when one encounters events that act as a reminder of what transpired. For example, a rape victim might hear news covering the rape incidents, and one is overcome by memories of what happened to you. One should certainly visit a doctor if they experience disturbing thoughts and feelings concerning horrific incidents for one month and above. In case one feels like it quite an impossible thing to try and come into terms with yourself following the traumatic experience, it is advisable to talk to a mental health professional. Getting timely help may help recover PTSD and might also prevent normal stress reactions from getting out of hands.

References

Javidi, H., & Yadollahie, M. (2012). Post-traumatic stress disorder. Int J Occup Environ Med (The IJOEM), 3(1 January).

Zisook, S., Rush, A. J., Albala, A., Alpert, J., Balasubramani, G. K., Fava, M., … & Wisniewski, S. (2004). Factors that differentiate early vs. later onset of major depression disorder. Psychiatry research, 129(2), 127-140.