A common mood disorder, known as depression, can have tolling effects on one’s life, preventing them from completing even the simplest daily tasks. Symptoms of depression from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) include: lethargy, feelings of worthlessness, loss of interest in family and friends, and loss of interest in activities that one used to enjoy. Depression can be caused by many factors including genetics, biology, painful events such as the loss of a loved one, self-defeating beliefs, and the different explanatory styles. Explanatory styles describe the way we explain unavoidable painful events to ourselves, and certain styles such as stable, global, and internal styles have a correlation to depression. Depression has the ability to slow us down, defuse aggression, and curbs risk taking. For many these extreme feelings can be debilitating in one’s life, causing them to seek professional help.
A few years ago my mother passed away. Quite obviously, I grew withdrawn from those close to her, lacked focus in school, didn’t really have the energy to care about anything, and rarely left the house. I then was convinced to go to therapy and after a few sessions, she explained I was showing signs of depression, but she could not diagnose it because she was not a psychiatrist. I then saw a psychiatrist who evaluated my symptoms, and diagnosed me with major depressive disorder. He prescribed medication to help alleviate the symptoms and make life a bit easier for me.
Now that I have taken Pysch 100, I understand what I went through much more clearly. Recalling from previous material, I learned why I needed to see a psychiatrist who had a MD in their field. Also, I recently learned how psychiatrists make their diagnoses based off the symptoms listed in the DSM, which is a national handbook for mental disorders . I also made the connection that depression is linked to a lack of norepinephrine and serotonin in the brain, which is why medications for depression often enhance those brain chemicals. Another connection I made was the biological aspect of depression. Depression runs heavily on both sides of my family, which explains why I was at higher risk of depression.