Why do People who Suffer from Depression Feel that They are Alone?

Scientifically speaking, there are certain factors that make us feel like we do. Chemicals in the brain such as serotonin and norepinephrine, control our moods. When these substances are outside their normal levels, the negative aspects of mood, it is very likely to occur.
One particular feeling one experiences is that loneliness. Depression, people tend to believe that they are the only ones suffering, that they are the ones who have to ensure that suffer, or that they are the ones who deserve to suffer. These feelings can be mild at first, but without proper management, they can become so intense that they can affect your health or cause pain to others.
Signs and symptoms of depression in need of assistance
Depression commonly occurs after a stressful situation or traumatic experiences. In many cases, feelings of sadness disappear in time. But there are times when they do not. If you or someone you know is depressed, there is the presence of the following signs and symptoms:

    * The extreme feelings of sadness
    * Withdrawn and aloof
    * Lack of or not interested at all to perform daily tasks
    Fatigue or lack of energy
    * Insomnia or sleeplessness
    * Sleep
    * Loss of appetite
    * Overeating
These symptoms can affect your physical health in a big way, so that necessary measures are called for. In addition, uncontrolled depression can progress to major depression, which could mean big problems for the affected person.
Some messages are survival mechanisms
If you know someone who is depressed, helping him / her to cope with it in a constructive manner, it is very important. Some of the coping mechanisms that will be helpful under the circumstances, include:

    * Talking. Get your favorite person to talk about his / her feelings, but never judge him / her. Your opinion is not that the point here, rather it is your just being there, what is more important.

    * Take your loved one in an empty room where he / she can be free to scream or cry, his / her feelings out. Taking it on the wall better than to take it to someone.

    * Your close one of them. Do not let your loved one to bathe in self-pity. Get him / her from his / her shell surrounding landscape and watch children playing around, or just enjoy the sun. These things can make a lot of wonders to the mood.

    * Take a break at work or out of town. Sometimes a change of scenery is all it takes to bounce back.
Depression should not take more than a couple of weeks. If so, and if it is accompanied by signs and symptoms that affect their health in one way or another, medical approaches should be instituted to prevent the deterioration of the case. Remember, at one time, depression has become a full-blown mental disorder, it will be very difficult to treat. In fact, there is no cure for such as bipolar or manic-depressive disorder, although there are means that you can control.
The first thing you can try to do, then, to convince your friend to see a therapist. The therapist is one who has the training and skills in the fight against depression individuals. He / she correctly assesses the individual case of stress, given the historical facts and physical manifestations among others. The therapist then helps the person to come to a better understanding of his / her depression and helps him / her in making and implementing plans and goals.
Along with psychotherapy, depression medication may be needed. However, medications for depression are many side effects. It is important that your patient is made to fully understand the need for medication and the risks associated with these buy Valium no prescription.

Find The Right Physician To Help Depression

The sensibly therapist can make all the difference in getting the most suitable depression treatment. Do some homework forward of you choose one, and don't be afraid to interview potential therapists to assign the person you're most comfortable with. Psychotherapy can be an leading part of your depression treatment. If you suffer from indentation, a therapist can teach you how to deal with your feelings, metamorphose the way you think, and change the way you behave to help mollify your symptoms.
Some people will-power improve with psychotherapy alone; others may exigency both therapy and a prescription antidepressant to the buy Diazepam online. Conclusion a therapist you are comfortable with is essential. You transfer need to talk openly and honestly with your psychoanalyst about your thoughts and feelings, so it is outstanding to find the right therapist for you.
Depression Treatment: Finding a Therapist
Different types of mental health professionals can serve as a therapist for the person with depression:

• Psychiatrists are medical doctors (MD or DO degree) who have completed specialized training in mental and emotional disorders. They can diagnose, treat, and prescribe medications for depression. They may also provide individual or group therapy.
• Psychologists have a doctoral degree (PhD or PsyD) in psychology. They are skilled in the diagnosis of emotional disorders and spend most of their time providing individual or group psychotherapy, but do not prescribe medications.
• Social workers usually have a master’s degree in social work (MSW) and have training in providing individual or group therapy.
• Licensed professional counselors have a master’s degree in psychology (or a related area) and are trained to diagnose and counsel individuals or groups.
• Psychiatric nurses are registered nurses (RNs) with training in psychiatric nursing. 

How do you go far finding the right shrink for you? “I would start with your [get ready care] doctor,” says Julie Walther Scheibel, MEd, a counselor at Concordia Broadcast Counseling and Resource Center in St. Louis. “Doctors should have planned a number of therapists or counselors that they counsel.” Walther Scheibel also recommends dispiriting to get personal references for therapists.
You can get a disparaging reference by asking about to see if your friends or next of kin members know of a assets c incriminating evidence therapist who has experience in treating cavity. Other resources to relief you find a therapist for indentation treatment include shire hospitals, universities, punctilious leaders, health surety companies, and acquaintances in the medical fan. 
Depression Treatment: Interviewing Potential Therapists

Once you have a list of at least two or three potential therapists, it is time to find which therapist is best for you. Call each one to get some key information before making an appointment. Questions to ask include:

• Is the therapist taking new patients?
• What kind of experience does the therapist have in treating patients who have depression?
• Where do the therapy sessions take place?
• How much does the therapy cost? You may have to also call your health insurer to find out if you are covered and up to what amount.
• Can I meet with the therapist before committing to a therapy session?

If you are able to make a consultation appointment before a therapy session, ask the therapist more specific preliminary questions such as:

• What type of therapy would you recommend for my depression symptoms?
• What will this type of therapy involve?
• What are the benefits and the primary goals of my depression treatment?
• Are you willing to work with other members of my medical team to coordinate my depression treatment? This is especially important if you have a non-MD therapist who will rely on your primary care doctor to prescribe medications.
• How often would I need therapy sessions? 

After tryst with the potential therapist, take some often to decide whether you are comfortable with him or her. If you aren’t, maintain looking until you find one you like and buy diazepam generic valium. Once you start therapy for your unhappiness, be patient.
Psychotherapy for depression can sometimes be disquieting, and you may find yourself doing most of the talking during the prime few sessions. Your therapist will alter ego with you to ease your depression symptoms and update your life. 

Is Dysthymic Disorder a Second-Rate Depression?

Dysthymic Disorder, used to be called Dysthymia, is a low-grade and yet chronic depression characterized by feelings of sadness or depression associated with lack of interest to do things and some physical symptoms such as lack of energy, sleep, and concentration.
Psychological symptoms such as feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, and worthlessness can also occur. In addition, some patients harbor thoughts of death and feelings of emptiness.
This is a type of clinical depression that is supposed to be "milder" than Major Depressive Disorder (MDD used to be called Major Depression) because the symptoms dont necessarily happen everyday. Unlike patients who suffer from MDD, Dysthymic patients are not bed-bound, still able to work, and does not appear to be sick. But most of these individuals complain that they haven't felt "normal" or "happy" for a long time.
Moreover, Dysthymic Disorder is manifested by lack of drive and motivation. Hence, relatives and friends tend to misinterpret their mood and behavior. Some patients endure the stigma of being considered "lazy" or not "motivated enough" to do worthwhile goals.
As time passes by, patients with this disorder have difficulty functioning. But because they still appear normal, the illness is not recognized and patients don't get treated early. A lot of times, they are not referred to a psychiatrist.
So is Dysthymic Disorder a second-rate psychiatric disorder? Based on my experience, patients experience considerable emotional turmoil. In fact, some dysthymic patients eventually develop a more serious depression called Major Depressive Disorder. When "double depression" (dysthymic disorder and major depression occurring together) happens, patients are so depressed that they become a threat to themselves and become functionally impaired. At this time, psychiatric hospitalization becomes necessary.
So Dysthymic Disorder is a serious health problem that should be recognized and treated promptly. It is an illness that somehow hides its existence from everyone including clinicians and patients themselves.
What is the treatment? Dysthymic disorder can be treated by antidepressants and psychotherapy. Most patients respond to treatment although some still suffer despite adequate treatment. Also, there are some individuals who only respond minimally. As such, this illness can be more challenging to treat than others.

Antidepressant Found To Extend Lifespan In C. Elegans

A team of scientists led by Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) investigator Linda B. Buck has found that a drug used to treat depression can extend the lifespan of adult roundworms.
Buck and colleagues Michael Petrascheck and Xiaolan Ye report in the November 22, 2007, issue of the journal Nature, that the antidepressant drug mianserin can extend the lifespan of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans by about 30 percent.
Intriguingly, the drug may act by mimicking the effects of caloric restriction, which has been shown to retard the effects of aging in a variety of animals ranging from worms and flies to mammals.
“Our studies indicate that lifespan extension by mianserin involves mechanisms associated with lifespan extension by dietary restriction,” said Buck, a member of the Basic Sciences Division of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. “We don’t have an explanation for this. All we can say is that if we give the drug to caloric restricted animals, it doesn’t increase their lifespan any further. That suggests the same mechanism may be involved.”
Researchers don’t yet understand exactly how mianserin staves off the effects of aging. But the drug appears to act the same way in both C. elegans and humans: by blocking certain receptors for the neurotransmitter serotonin. Serotonin is a chemical that cells use to communicate, helping them regulate many functions, including mood, appetite, and sensory perception.
As an antidepressant, mianserin is marketed under different trade names in countries outside the United States, including Bolvidon, Norval, and Tolvon. Buck said it was a surprise to find that a drug used to treat depression in humans could extend lifespan in worms. The researchers in Buck’s lab found that in addition to inhibiting certain serotonin receptors in the worm, it also blocked receptors for another neurotransmitter, octopamine.
A number of observations support the idea that serotonin and octopamine may complement one another in a physiological context, Buck explained, with serotonin signaling the presence of food and octopamine signaling its absence or a state of starvation. C. elegans, for instance, usually only lays eggs when food is on hand. But serotonin stimulates egg laying in the absence of food, while octopamine inhibits egg laying even when food is nearby. Another example of interplay between the two chemicals is that pharyngeal pumping, the mechanism by which worms ingest food, is jump-started by serotonin and thwarted by octopamine.
“In our studies, mianserin had a much greater inhibitory effect on the serotonin receptor than the octopamine receptor,” she said. “One possibility is that there is a dynamic equilibrium between serotonin and octopamine signaling and the drug tips the balance in the direction of octopamine signaling, producing a perceived, though not real, state of starvation that activates aging mechanisms downstream of dietary restriction.”
Buck and her colleagues chose to focus on the effects of mianserin based on the results of a search through 88,000 chemicals for agents that extended the lifespan of nematodes. They found 115 such chemicals. In follow-up studies of one chemical, they found four additional compounds, including mianserin, that extended lifespan by 20-33 percent. All four compounds inhibit certain types of serotonin receptors in humans.
“We screened a wide variety of chemicals without knowing anything about them except that they were small molecules,” Buck noted. “By screening adult animals with this extremely varied panel of compounds, we hoped to identify drugs that could increase lifespan in adults, even though some might have a deleterious effect on the developing animal.”
By identifying drugs that influence lifespan, Buck added, it may be possible to home in on how those drugs act and contribute to a growing body of knowledge about the genetic mechanisms of aging.
“Other researchers have done beautiful work using molecular genetic approaches to identify genes involved in aging,” she said. “We decided to take a chemical approach. By finding chemicals that enhance longevity, and then finding the targets of those chemicals, it may be possible to identify additional genes important in aging. In addition, the chemical approach could point to drugs suitable for testing in mammals.”
Buck said that her group has yet to identify what kinds of cells are affected by the drug, because while the serotonin receptors involved are only found on neurons, many types of cells–not just cells of the nervous system–have receptors for octopamine.

Americanization Is Linked to Depression

A study of 439 U.S. and Mexican-born Latinas seeking pregnancy and postpartum services at public health clinics in San Antonio uncovered elevated levels of depression among the more "Americanized" women, report researchers from The University of Texas School of Public Health and The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio in the most recent online issue of the Maternal and Child Health Journal.
"Americanization" or acculturation is the process by which immigrants adopt the lifestyle and customs of their host nation, and key indicators include preferred language and place of birth, lead author Marivel Davila said. Davila is a graduate student at the UT School of Public Health and a quantitative research analyst at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio.
Elevated levels of depression were reported by the women born in the United States, as well as those who asked to conduct their interviews in English. Two non-acculturation variables were associated with elevated depression - being single and being pregnant.
"Screening for depression during pregnancy is important for this population group, given Latinas' high rates of fertility and births to single women, particularly among more acculturated U.S.- born Latinas," Davila and her colleagues wrote in the article.
According to the National Center for Health Statistics, single motherhood among Latinas in Texas exceeds the national average. In Texas in 2005, 43 percent of all Latina births were to single women. Nationally, the overall average was 37 percent.
"The sample for this study was a low-income population," Davila said. "Our conclusions may or may not be different for women in other socioeconomic status (SES) groups. Hence, more research needs to be conducted among Latinas from differing SES groups, including research focusing on the role of social support and cultural values/beliefs related to childbirth and pregnancy among Latinas."
The women were interviewed in eight family planning clinics and six prenatal clinics of the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District (SAMHD) between May and August of 2003. Of the participants, 318 were born in Mexico and 121 in the United States. They were given the choice of conducting the interview in English or Spanish.
"The higher prevalence rate of depression in Americanized Latina women is of concern in our community as the population demographics clearly indicate a significant rate of growth of this group in their childbearing years," said Fernando A. Guerra, M.D., director of health for the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District. "Thus, it is important to more clearly understand the circumstances that affect their physical and emotional well-being during pregnancy so that preventive measures can be initiated. This is critical for the overall health of both the mother and child."
Women in the study were part of the Perinatal Depression Project for Healthy Start, an initiative to provide mental health services to pregnant and postpartum women by SAMHD. They were screened for depressive symptoms using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies - Depression (CES-D) Scale, a 20-item, questionnaire designed to gauge the level of depressive symptoms over the previous week. Women with a score of 21 or greater were classified as having elevated depressive symptoms.
"Women who were US-born were significantly more likely than Mexican-born women to meet the cutoff score (21 on the CES-D scale)," the authors wrote. "Women who conducted their interview in English were significantly more likely to express depressive symptoms compared to women who conducted their interview in Spanish."
Davila said symptoms of depression may include: emotional stress, helplessness, irritability and anger. Symptoms specific to the pregnancy and postpartum period can include overly intense worries about the baby, and a lack of interest or fear of harming the baby.

If You Have Depression Watch For Alzheimer’s Risk

Although individuals with depression may be more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease, symptoms of depression do not appear to increase in the years before a diagnosis is made, according to a report in the April issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. This suggests that depression is not a consequence of developing Alzheimer’s disease but may instead be a risk factor for dementia.
Previous studies have found higher levels of depressive symptoms (such as feeling sad) among patients with Alzheimer’s disease and its precursor, mild cognitive impairment, according to background information in the article. “The basis of this association is uncertain, however,” the authors write. “A leading hypothesis is that depressive symptoms do not constitute a true risk factor but rather a consequence of the disease.” If this were the case, symptoms of depression would likely increase during the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease.
Robert S. Wilson, Ph.D., of Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, and colleagues studied 917 older Catholic nuns, priests and monks who did not have dementia beginning in 1994. Participants had a yearly clinical evaluation that included a neurological examination, cognitive (thinking, learning and memory) testing and classification of Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment. They also completed a 10-item scale assessing their symptoms of depression.
At the beginning of the study, 53.6 percent of participants reported no symptoms of depression, 23.9 percent reported one symptom, 9.7 percent reported two, 6.1 percent reported three and 6.8 percent reported four or more. During follow-up, 190 individuals developed Alzheimer’s disease. Those with more symptoms of depression at the beginning of the study were more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease.
However, “those who developed Alzheimer’s disease showed no increase in depressive symptoms before the diagnosis was made, and this finding was not modified by age, sex, education, memory complaints, vascular burden or personality,” the authors write. “Among those without cognitive impairment at baseline, depressive symptoms did not increase in those who subsequently developed mild cognitive impairment.”
Symptoms of depression may be associated with changes in the brain that reduce its resistance to dementia, the authors write. “Understanding the mechanisms linking depressive symptoms with dementia could suggest novel approaches to delaying dementia onset because animal research suggests diverse means by which the adverse effects of chronic stress may be modified.”
Read more about the study linking Depression and Alzheimer’s Disease at HULIQ.

Selective Eating Disorder: Extreme Picky Eating Becomes a Medical Diagnosis

Children are often called “picky eaters” because of a hesitance to try new foods and seemingly surviving on little more than chicken nuggets and French fries. Most kids, as they get older, overcome the tendency to severely limit their diet; however, sometimes they grow into adults who continue extreme selective eating. The American Psychiatric Association is proposing a new medical diagnosis for this condition called “Selective Eating Disorder” or SED.
The British Journal of Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry describes selective eating disorder as a “little studied phenomenon of eating a highly limited range of foods, associated with an unwillingness to try new foods. When this happens social avoidance, anxiety and conflict can result.”
Read: Picky Eating Common in Autistic Children
SED is common in those with autism spectrum disorders.
Researchers at Duke University’s Center for Eating Disorders have initiated an online national public registry of selective eating. In less than five months, 7,500 people have fully registered for the Food FAD Study (Finicky Eating in Adults) with more who have started the survey but have not completed it. The registry offers a place for patients to report on their unusual eating preferences and habits, giving researchers an insight into the disorder.
Director Nancy Zucker stresses that “people who are picky aren’t doing this to be stubborn” but actually experience food differently than the rest of us. Researchers aren’t sure if biology or psychology is the driving force – both are likely involved. Zucker believes that SED patients may be “super tasters”, meaning they taste certain flavors more acutely than other people. Other theories suggest an early negative experience with food, such as childhood gastrointestinal issues.