Our moods vary as we navigate our lives. We have periods of happiness and joy and periods of sadness and despair. When these feelings of despair persist for 2 or more weeks, we may be experiencing a depressive episode. Depression can vary in intensity from mild, moderate and severe. The feelings of depression are frequently described as despair, worthlessness, and hopelessness. The intensity of these feelings can fluctuate between coping with our day to day lives to inability to function in any type of activity. They can be a reflection of our life situation at the time; such as unemployment, bereavement, psychological trauma and other life challenges.
There is a body mind connection when we are looking at depression. Our health conditions can trigger depression and depression can trigger adverse health conditions. The ideas of wellness are based on the mind body connection. It is important for us to look at our entire health, not just our physical health or mental health. What we eat, how much we sleep, and exercise, collectively has an impact on our mood.
There are successful treatments for depression. There are various techniques in talk therapy that can help elevate the symptoms of depression. Talking with friends and family about the underlying issues of concern can also be helpful to those who are experiencing depression. We can also try bringing order to our environment and trying to engage in activities that we enjoy can jump start us into feeling more aligned with our desired feelings. Learning to use healthy coping skills can be learned and activated when needed. Depression is not a condition that has to dominate our stories, we can learn to cope and manage these feelings, we can live the lives that we want.
Depression. (2020, January). Retrieved August 15, 2020, from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/depression
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