Self-Management of Depression

When one is feeling low, it doesn’t necessarily mean that one is going through the throes of clinical depression, i.e., major depressive disorder. There are several conditions that may mimic clinical depression but don’t reach the severity or pervasiveness of the former condition or are symptomatically distinct. It is important to recognize these so that one may not unnecessarily get prescribed medications or started on psychotherapy as some of these conditions are time limited or may remit on their own. At the same time, some of these conditions such as complicated grief may need specialized therapy. Conditions that resemble depression but are not depression include the following: Sadness: Depression is more than the normal pangs of sadness one gets when experiencing a stressful situation. Depression is a more pervasive and persistent change in your mood along with changes in your physiological functions such as sleep, appetite, and energy level. Although stress can trig...

Grief and depression may have some overlapping symptoms such as sadness, crying, fatigue, reduced concentration, and sleep and appetite disturbances. However, grief and depression are not the same. Grief is a normal reaction to a loss, whereas depression is a clinical condition. Other distinguishing features between grief and depression are as follows (American Psychiatric Association, 2013; Shear, 2012):   Although in grief, individuals feel sad and are tearful, the predominant mood in grief is a feeling of emptiness and loss. In contrast, in depression, the depressed mood is persistent, and there is an inability to anticipate happiness or pleasure. Bereaved people feel sad because they miss a loved one, whereas individuals with depression feel sad because they see themselves and/or the world as inadequate, flawed, or worthless. Self-esteem is preserved in grief, whereas depression is usually characterized by feelings of worthlessness and self-loathing. Feelin...