(ThyBlackMan.com) A major depression typically lasts 15 days and plays havoc on a person’s ability to work, perform everyday tasks, and maintain fulfilling social relations. It has an influence on a person‘s actions, perceptions, conduct, and well being. Look for these signs if you’re not sure if someone is depressed and what to do next.
Emotional Numbness
Depression will cause us intense feelings of sorrow and desperation sometimes. We feel nothing at all. If you sense, emotional numbness in a loved one, it could be a key symptom of depression. People feel numb to everything that is surrounding them and everything that is inside them. It can cause them feeling entirely detached from the world.
Emotional numbness can be an effect of becoming absolutely overwhelmed. Stress can hit different parts of our brain when we encounter extreme pressure, which can contribute towards this numb feeling.
Anhedonia
Imagine the things which once gave your loved ones happiness just don’t do so anymore. Imagine that even the nearest, most trusted connections seem unable to bring any enjoyment. Imagine that there was no longer any excitement about the things in life that bring joy to most people – nature, food, entertainment, art.
Anhedonia can come in many different forms, all of which are caused by the lack of pleasant feelings about anything that would normally trigger a better feeling. If you observe anhedonia in your loved ones, make sure to help them open up.
Self deprecating jokes
There have been numerous studies describing the positives of being ready to laugh at ourselves, so there is a space for self-deprecation, described as the propensity to disparage or undervalue oneself. Not only can a self-aware laugh diffuse an uncomfortable moment, but it can also lead to greater personal well-being levels. Although all of that might be true, the truth of the matter is that it only helps in moderation and if someone has already formed a habit of cracking self deprecating jokes, this could be unhealthy and a strong sign of depression they are going through.
It’s easy to sweep upsetting thoughts under the rug and crack up at a deprecating joke, but the need is to show more sensitivity and empathy for others who regularly use self-deprecating humor, considering the stigma which affects mental health in our culture.
They zone out a lot
Depression is not just sadness. Instead, with both typical and far less common symptoms, depression is a complex medical condition. From one individual to another, it often appears differently. Is your loved one withdrawing from their usual activities? Isolation breeds loneliness in another case, and depression intensifies isolation. The lack of connection with friends and relatives signals a concern in either case. The signs of depression differ among people, but there are two distinctive indicators, at least one of which should be observed for an effective diagnosis of depression.
People with such conditions may start displaying signs in early childhood, according to a research, and only 5 percent develop them past the age of 25.
They don’t make plans on their own
Serious depression is a psychological disorder that allows you to be persistently depressed for a long period of time, the most common signs you’ll recognize in loved ones are their having no plans of their own or feeling clueless about what they like to do.
For a certain amount of time, a depressed acquaintance might reject your invites to meet, have really no plans of his own, forget or cancel plans again and again, or start avoiding phone calls and texts. Your friend may yell at you in person, drink heavily, get irritated over the minor issues, or tend to be more nervous, anxious, dull, and generally very pessimistic and sad.
Losing interest in things all of a sudden
A big indicator of depression is losing interest in almost everything, as is anhedonia (loss of gratification) in particular. This adds up whether you are socially isolated or usually in a depressed mood. They all add up whether you have lost inspiration or self-esteem. Either way, one of the defining characteristics of depression is the lack of interest in apparently anything, whether it’s a favorite leisure activity or the people nearest to the person, it may make it almost difficult to get out of bed at all. People don’t get much fun anymore and it’s just difficult to work sometimes.
Help them maintain a constant routine with a fixed wake time, bedtime, and try that they can keep themselves active in something, even though they don’t find such activities pleasurable anymore. If you notice these symptoms developing in someone you know, help them in any way you can.
They feel “sorry” for silly things
It’s guilt that can add to self-doubt and sometimes self-harm. Insecurity, uncertainty and even bad choices are triggered by guilt. It alters choices and conversations. Guilt makes individuals second-guess themselves. Irresolvable guilt does not stop making someone feel emotionally awful. It causes a lot of stress that contributes to symptoms that correspond to those encountered by depressed individuals.
Some people say sorry over silly things not only because they tend to carry guilt feelings, but also because they keep thinking about events and literally pay unnecessary attention to small things. They want to make things right at the cost of the peace of mind. If you hear your loved ones saying “sorry” often or randomly get a message saying “sorry,” reach out to them and help them open up.
Staff Writer; Jack Bell
Cell Phone Guru & Video Games Junkie… With that, like my articles, feel free to hit me up at; JackBell@ThyBlackMan.com.