Sarah Thueson
Clinical depression is defined as a constant sense of hopelessness and despair. Many people experience minor or major depression (clinical depression) and may not be aware of it. Major depression may cause difficulty to work, study, sleep, eat and enjoy friends and family. Depression is causes many hopeless feelings to be aroused while depression. They main cause of depression is a brain chemical imbalance with mood-related chemicals such as serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine; having too much or too little of any of these chemicals causes a change in mood, usually causing depression. Many people struggle with depression maybe once or often more than once in their lives. However, people may not know how to cope and deal with depression appropriately. Depression had a wide range of intensity. Clinical depression has many different symptoms that vary too. Some symptoms include, fatigue or loss of energy almost every day, feelings of worthlessness or guilt, impaired concentration, indecisiveness, insomnia or hypersomnia (excessive sleeping), markedly diminished interest or pleasure in almost all activities nearly every day, restlessness or feeing of slowed down, recurring thoughts of death or suicide, significant weight loss or gain. Depression is a heavy weight to carry and very difficult to improve. Depression affects daily tasks in everyday life. Depression makes it difficult to feel emotion and to care about the outcome of certain situations. A character in the book, It’s kind of a Funny Story says, “I didn't want to wake up. I was having a much better time asleep. And that's really sad. It was almost like a reverse nightmare, like when you wake up from a nightmare you're so relieved. I woke up into a nightmare.” (Vizzini) Depression makes everything seem sad and worthless. Depression is a manageable disorder as long as the person suffering is ready and willing to make changes in their life. Depression is treated with many different medicines or drugs that can be taken daily to stabilize and balance brain chemicals. Psychotherapy and Electric Shock treatments are always available and beneficial in certain cases; although, not all depression treatments are as intense or penetrating. Simple things like practicing yoga breathing and relaxation methods are helpful. Exercise and yoga are also very beneficial to depression. It temporarily boots endorphins. Regular exercise seems to encourage the brain to rewire itself in positive ways and helps pump more oxygen into your brain. Eating healthy and getting enough sleep also helps improve depression. By eating healthy your body and brain will naturally start to improve and feel more endurance and strength. Sleeping is also very important to be able to recuperate. (Griffin) There are also, school counselors who are always willing to talk to kids who may be dealing with depression, even at Lone Peak High School. Talking and sharing your feelings is also a very beneficial way to cope and deal with depression and is highly recommended.
Depression affects about 6.7% of the U.S. population over the age of 18 according to the nation Institute of Mental Health. Overall, between 20% and 25% of adults may suffer an episode of major depression at some point during their lifetime. (Major Depression (Clinical Depression)) Major depression