Campaigns - Mental Health - What is Depression?
A diagnosis of depression will be made if a person has a persistently low mood that significantly influences their everyday life. Some of the symptoms can include those listed below:
- Variation of mood during the day. It's often worse in the morning, improving as the day goes on - but the pattern can be the other way around
- Disturbed sleep, usually waking early and being unable to get back to sleep. This is often because of the negative thoughts racing through their heads
- A general slowing down of thought, speech and movement
- Feelings of anxiety
- Tearfulness for no reason
- Short temper
- Lack of energy and constant exhaustion
- Inability to enjoy things
- Lack of concentration
- Difficulty making decisions
- Feeling that you're forgetful
- Negative thoughts about the future
- Feelings of guilt
- Loss of identity
- Blaming self and low self-esteem
- Feelings of hopelessness and despair
- Unrealistic sense of failure
- Loneliness, even when around others
- Becoming preoccupied with illness
- Loss of appetite and resulting loss of weight
- Reduced desire for sex
Who does this affect?
- In any given year, about seven percent - between 13 million and 14 million people - will experience a depressive disorder
- About 16 percent of adults will experience depression at some point in their life
- Suicide is the third leading cause of death for people between the ages of 15 and 24
- Depression is most common in people aged 25-44 years
What is Manic Depression?
- Someone diagnosed with manic depression may swing from moods of deep depression to periods of overactive, excited behaviour (mania). Between these severe highs and lows there may be relatively stable times.
- During the manic phase, people may feel euphoric, important, and full of ambitious schemes and ideas. They may spend money extravagantly, and build up debts. They may eat and sleep very little, and talk so quickly that it's difficult to understand them. They may be easily irritable and angry. A person may be quite unaware of these changes in their attitude or behaviour. After a manic phase is over, they may be quite shocked at what they've done and the effect that it has had.
- Mania may flare up periodically, but depression is the most consistent symptom. People may feel overwhelming despair, guilt and worthlessness. Problems concentrating and remembering things can make life very difficult and undermine the simplest tasks. Manic depression may provoke suicidal feelings.
- There are various types of manic depression including-
- Bipolar manic depression (affective mood disorder)-involves both highs and lows and is the most common form of manic depression.
- Unipolar manic depression- the depressive phase without a manic period.
- Hypomania- a less severe form of mania, which is not usually followed by a major depressive episode.
- Some people have very few manic-depressive episodes, with years of stability in between. Others have many more frequent cycles- in the case of 'rapid cycling' it may mean 4 or more episodes a year.
- Roughly 1% of the population suffers with manic depression, it is fairly equal amongst males and females and most commonly diagnosed in the 20s and 30s.
How is manic depression caused?
- Genetic Inheritance-some people may be genetically more prone to developing manic depression. However not all experts believe that genes play a part in the condition. It's generally agreed that genetic make-up alone can't cause the condition.
- Stressful events- Some people can link the start of their manic depression to a period of great stress, and psychiatrists believe events trigger off a biochemical imbalance in the brain.
- Family Background- Some psychiatrists and psychotherapists believe manic depression can result from severe emotional damage caused in early life. Children who have been either over-protected or over-criticised may be more vulnerable to developing manic depression because, as adults, they may have a very fragile sense of self, and difficulty containing strong feelings and emotions.
- Life problems-Manic depression could be a reaction to overwhelming problems in everyday life. Constantly blaming other people and being highly irritable puts barriers up and could be the means of avoiding emotional dependence on friends and relatives.
How can Manic Depression be treated?
- Sufferers are usually referred to a psychiatrist, to discuss the various medical treatments available.
- Medication: -Lithium carbonate, controls condition but not a cure
- Carbamazepine is prescribed to curb agitation and has a sedative effect
- Valproate (an anti-epileptic drug) is increasingly used for manic depression
- Talking/Counselling: Counselling or psychotherapy can help people understand why they feel as they do, and change both the way they think and feel. Cognitive behaviour therapy aims to help people to identify problems and overcome emotional difficulties.
- Hospital Admission: Gives staff the opportunity to assess patients needs and try to find the best help.
- Crisis services: have been developed in some areas as alternatives to hospital.
ECT: Electroconvulsive therapy is a controversial treatment, which involves passing an electric current through the brain of someone who is under anaesthetic. It's given for severe depression and was regularly used to treat mania before antipsychotic drugs became available.
What is Schizophrenia?
- When someone cannot tell the difference between what is real and what is imaginary, they may be described as having a 'psychotic' illness. Schizophrenia is the most common of these.
- It is different for each sufferer but usually involves a dramatic disturbance in thoughts and feelings and behaviour that may seem odd to other people.
- Some people hear voices, others see things that are not there, or feel they are being persecuted.
- Some people only experience one episode of psychosis and some recover from schizophrenia. For others, schizophrenia is a long-term illness.
- People with schizophrenia’s experiences may include:
- Delusions- Strange beliefs or thoughts with little no basis in reality
- Hallucinations-Hearing, seeing, feeling or even smelling things that are not there
- Disordered thinking- Thoughts 'jumping' between completely unrelated topics
- Lack of awareness of other people’s feelings, or expression of own emotions.
- Difficulty concentrating
- Feeling anxious/depressed
- It's estimated that 1% of the UK population experiences schizophrenia at some point in their lives.
- There is more media misinformation about schizophrenia than about any other psychiatric diagnosis.
- It's not true that schizophrenia means 'split personality' or that someone with this problem will swing wildly from being calm to being out of control.
- Most people diagnosed with schizophrenia don't commit violent crimes.
How is Schizophrenia caused?
Whilst no-one really knows how Schizophrenia is caused, some ‘risk-factors’ have been identified:
- Biological inheritance- its suspected that combinations of certain genes may make people more vulnerable to developing schizophrenia.
- Personality and life experiences- early experiences in life can affect the development of the brain.
- Dopamine- There is a theory that an excess of dopamine, one of the chemicals that carries messages between the brain cells may possibly role in the development of schizophrenia
- Stressful life events- Evidence suggests stressful or life-changing events may trigger schizophrenia. Being homeless, having no job, losing someone close to you, or being physically, emotionally, sexually or racially abused or harassed may be factors.
- Drug Abuse- Studies have shown cannabis can people to develop the symptoms of schizophrenia. It's already been established that using cannabis, cocaine and amphetamines compounds, the problem
It's generally agreed schizophrenia likely caused by a combination of factors; someone's genetic make-up could make them more vulnerable, but stressful events or life experiences could trigger the onset of symptoms. There no real answer to why some people develop the symptoms, when others do not.
What treatment is available?
- Medication- Doctors usually prescribe neuroleptic drugs (also known as antipsychotic drugs or major tranquillisers) to control the 'positive' symptoms. They have a sedative action, which can make it more difficult to cope with side effects or to benefit from talking treatments. They may also have unpleasant side effects, particularly in high doses. On very rare occasions rapid tranquillisation may be necessary.
- Talking therapies- psychotherapy, counselling and cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT), can help people to overcome schizophrenia, by recognising their problems, dealing with its consequences, developing coping strategies and learning how to prevent crisis situations developing.
- Community care-Everyone referred to psychiatric services should have a thorough assessment of their health and social care needs, a care plan and ongoing reviews of their progress. Home treatment teams, early intervention teams and acute day hospitals may help people to avoid going into hospital.
Useful contact details:
The Student Advice and Representation Centre in the Portland Building, has loads of free leaflets and information that is available for you to pick up. Drop in anytime:
- Monday: 9am - 4pm
- Tuesday: 9am - 4pm (during term-time we are usually also available in the Amenities Centre at Sutton Bonington on Tuesday afternoons)
- Wednesday: 10am - 5pm (9am - 4pm vacations)
- Thursday: 9am - 4pm
- Friday: 9am - 4pm
Email: student-advice-centre@nottingham.ac.uk
University of Nottingham Counselling Service, Trent Building, University Park. To make a free appointment call 0115 951 3695 Appointments can be made at University sites at Sutton Bonnington, Boston, Lincoln, Derby, Mansfield and Nottingham.
This website is aimed at students just like you, check it out: www.studentdepression.org
Some other useful websites:
www.samaritans.org.uk/
www.depression.org.uk/
www.save.org/
www.depressionalliance.org/
www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk
University of Nottingham Students' Union
Portland Building, University Park , Nottingham NG7 2RD
Tel: + 44 (0)115 846 8800 Fax: + 44 (0)115 846 8801
© 2005 University of Nottingham Students' Union