When you hear or read about clinical depression, how much do you really understand about it? You might suspect that you have it or at least something like it, but did you know that there are many different types of depression? Getting the right information on depression is important if you are to learn how to treat and cope with it.
Remember that depression is simply a condition like any other complaint. If you get a pain in your stomach you find out if it is ulcers, wind, IBS etc. The same thing with depression, you have a complaint and you need the correct information on depression so that you can work out what the problem is. Do you have postpartum, major depressive disorder, seasonal, bipolar, dysthymia or perhaps just a bad case of the blues?
Information On Depression - Postpartum
Postpartum is a form of depression that affects women during pregnancy and after childbirth. It is usually caused by the rush of hormones that a woman experiences, as well as things such as grief over perceived losses (loss of her figure, loss of her girlhood, loss of her freedom, and so on), a feeling of disappointment if the child has not “magically” solved problems she expected it to (i.e., giving her increased self-esteem, pulling her and her partner closer), and things such as these. Postpartum is one of the few types of depression that may go away after the woman’s physical system returns to normal and she adjusts to her new circumstances.
Information On Depression – Seasonal Affective Disorder
As the name suggests, seasonal depression is a type of depression that affects someone who is sensitive to a lack of sunlight. They become very depressed during the winter months or with long periods indoors. Getting outdoors as much as possible and exposure to bright lights will help this form of depression.
Information On Depression - Major depressive disorder
Major depressive disorder and bipolar are the two most serious types of depression there are. Major depressive disorder is a very extreme form of depression that can lead to thoughts of suicide or self-mutilation; bipolar is marked by severe mood swings where a person can feel almost euphoric one moment and then extremely depressed the next. These types of depression will need medical intervention including regular medication.
Information On Depression - Dysthymia
This basically means any type of depression that doesn’t fit into one of the other categories. It is not considered extreme enough to be thought of as a major depressive disorder but is serious enough that it should not be confused with “a case of the blues” or other types of everyday sadness. There have been many more cases of dysthymia over the last few years because those who suffer from it did not belong in any other category or did not suffer from one of the other types of depression but who still needed medical attention.
You should speak to your doctor regardless of which type of depression you are suffering from.
You will find a lot more information on depression in our free ebook “How To Diagnose Depression”
