Introduction Is depression a mental illness? Before we get into the discussion we need to know what depression is. Depression is typically defined as a mood state that goes well beyond temporarily feeling sad or blue. It is a serious medical illness that affects one’s thoughts, feelings, behavior, mood and physical health. How is it determined to be a mental illness? The American Psychiatric Association 's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) is the current reference used by health care professionals to diagnose mental illnesses such as depression. Depression symptoms are listed as follows: Depressed mood (such as feelings of sadness or emptiness; Reduced interest in activities that used to be enjoyed; …show more content…
Furthermore, psychological trauma and negative thinking are key components to both the onset of depression, and the direction it proceeds. Yes - we can influence our chemicals via our thoughts. An example of trauma induced depression would be a case of an individual who was responsible for a car accident that resulted in the death of a child on the other vehicle. This individual had been plagued and overwhelmed with a seemingly unbearable amount of guilt, and slips in to a state of depression. Perhaps, someone has suffered severe injuries and had jeopardize their ability to walk again, and has proceeded to slip in to a state of …show more content…
This is where many people feel a need to respond. I can just hear many of you say "But you can 't simply STOP being depressed! It 's a disease!" Well, there 's more to it then that. Our thoughts trigger feelings. Can we agree on this? When we awaken in the morning, if we begin our day with cheerful thoughts, it generally sets a positive mood. If we begin our day with dreadful thoughts about bills, traffic, marital problems, car problems, the weather, etc, then it sets a negative mood. Thoughts remain on the back burner of our subconscious, even after the thoughts have been forgotten on a conscious
According to National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), depression is a mood disorder that impairs both social and occupational functioning. Depression affects the way you feel, think, and executes the daily task, such as eating, working or sleeping. For an individual to be diagnosed with depression, the symptoms must be present for at least two weeks.
Depression was once believed to affect mainly adults for various reasons. It was hardly ever seen in minors or college students. Today depression is more common in younger populations mainly college students. There are many things that can trigger depression in college students, such as the environment, anxiety, and the fear of failure. All these things can contribute to depression in college students and sometimes cannot be seen. Many college students will never seek help, and many wont ever admit that they struggle with it.
There are so many types of mental illnesses that affect people every day. When some people think of mental illnesses they think of the ones that would cause people to have physical symptoms as well, but that’s untrue, there are many more that you would never know anyone has if you were to see them on the street. As defined by the 2008 encyclopedia “a mental illness is any disease of the mind or brain that seriously affects a person’s ability or behavior. Symptoms of a mental illness may include extreme moods, such as excessive sadness or anxiety, or a decreased ability to think clearly or remember well.” A mentally ill person has severe symptoms that damage the person’s ability to function in everyday activities and situations. Every nation and every economic level can be affected by a mental illness. In the United States alone about 3% of the population has severe mental illness and to add to that number about 40% of people will experience a type of mental illness at least once in their lives. Some cases of mental illnesses can go away on their own, but some cases are so severe that they require professional treatment. There is so much more available to help people recover from their symptoms than in the past.
It is known that depression is a growing issue, but the question is why it is continuing to affect more and more people, specifically students. It is difficult to pinpoint a specific cause when there are so many theories as to what exactly causes depression. Some argue that it is genetic while others say it is a result of too much stress. This is not to say that there is only one cause of depression, but there has to be a reason why the number of depressed students has been increasing in the recent years.
Do you ever feel down and out? Fill yourself loosing interest in thing you used to love? Then you might have depression. Depression is a period of time in which you feel sad. I know you are saying to yourself you are just a little down, but depression is a serious medical condition in which a person feels very sad, hopeless, and unimportant and often unable to live in a normal way. There are multiple types of depression, that effects your mental state in various ways.
The Mental Health Foundation and Grohol argue that depression is not a mental illness, but is an issue and disorder because it’s “symptoms” are that of the emotional state. Grohol also takes a stance on the definition of a disorder and the way depression fits into this definition in saying that “A disorder simply means something that is out of the ordinary, which depression and other mental disorders are” ( Grohol,2016). Grohols’ definition on what a disorder is, is not necessarily wrong since disorders do mean that something is not functioning as it should be in a system, in this case the neurological system; however, a disorder can also function as a disease or illness because as Grohol states in contradiction to himself “Diseases are manifestations of a problem with some physical organ or component within the body”( Grohol, 2016), but he fixes this contradiction in also stating that a
Depression is an illness within itself that affects the “whole body”. (Staywell,1998) The body, feelings, thoughts, and behavior are all immensely altered when someone is depressed. It is not a sign of personal weakness, or a condition that can be wished or willed away. For some people depression is just temporary, but for others it can last for weeks, months and even years.
Depression is a serious mental health illness which affects an individuals’ mind, body and mood. It is a chronic and lifelong health condition (NICE, 2006) thought to be caused by a number of biological factors including neurotransmitter disturbances in the brain and an element of genetic vulnerability; these are often in addition to psychosocial factors such as the occurrence of undesirable life events, limited social network options, poor self esteem and the occurrence of any adverse life events during a persons’ lifetime (Bernstein, 2006). Depression can have an impact on a persons’ ability to do many things including working, engaging with others, participating fully in family life or maintaining relationships, and it can also impact on a person...
Everyone feels anxious and stressed at times. However, when these feelings become a common every day ordeal, they can have devastating effects on one’s mental health. In recent years, the number of college students who are saying they have mental illnesses has been steadily increasing. Not everyone is going to be willing to get help, and the result of that could be a drop in academic performance and overall unhappiness. What colleges need to do is provide means of helping those who need it and ways to keep stress levels down to prevent devastating mental disorders from developing.
The mental health assessment is a crucial part in everyday nursing care as it evaluates an individual’s mental condition to assess for risk factors of mental illnesses and provide optimal care and treatment. Mental health is described as “a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.” (CDC) If the patient not mentally healthy, they can develop mentally illnesses, which can affect treatment and the disease process of physical ailments because without mental health a person cannot be completely healthy. “Suicide Risk Assessment in High Risk Adolescents” is a nursing article that outlines suicide risk factors and prevention strategies for assist nurses in performing mental health assessments. Suicide, the act of
A mental health counselor develops a professional relationship that empowers diverse individuals, families and groups to accomplish mental health and career goals. Helping others to accomplish their goals and listening to various stories of hardship have always played a part in my life. Stories of others have helped me get through rough times, and so did my own personal stories do the same for others. My story may help save a life tomorrow. It is a rewarding career path that one may enjoy which requires excellent communication skills and a commit between each other.
In today’s world, mental illness is still looked upon as a very bad thing and the negative views of mental illness are common within the employees. Most of the time, people assume that employees who suffer from mental illness are often seen as weird, defensive, and hard to talk to. Generally, concepts about mental illness tend to be subjective, leading to difficulties in defining mental illness. One article has described mental illness as, “ mentally distorted, mad, or crazy” and the degree of mental illness varies depending from person to person (Corrigan et al. 2010, p. 909). The following essay is based on the topic ‘Mental Illness as an Emerging Discourse’ and the article ‘Employee Mental Illness: Managing the Hidden Epidemic’ was the main article that was analysed and used in the essay to discuss the topic. The analysis has been divided into two parts which are covered equally by the study group members.
Is depression a mental illness? Learn ways to handle it.Is depression a mental illness? This question must have come to your mind every time you feel sad or can seem to get go with your day. The answer is yes. According to researches depression is a very serious mental illness which can break a person’s mental strength and also it also affects a person physically too. Many people who are depressed and do not take the right help fails to function normally and even have suicide tendencies.If you feel that you are a patient of depression then you should take the right steps to overcome this mental illness and have a healthy life. Read on to know some of the crucial step which you should take.Learn about itBefore you decide if you are a patient of
The silent killer that takes lives without warning, punishment, or any sympathy; depression is truly one of the most prominent mental illnesses in the world. Depression is defined as a mental illness inducing a severe and staunch feeling of sadness. The term depressed is coined in English as a temporary sadness that everyone experiences in their life. Despite that depression is more active in women, it is still one of the most common mental illnesses in the world. It affects anybody, regardless of sex, race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic standing. Regardless of all these facts, surprisingly little is known about depression, however, scientists have been able to hypothesize major causes, effects, and treatments for the disability affecting over
Mental health refers to the state of individuals psychologically, emotionally and socially. Mental health affects a person’s emotions, feelings, thoughts, and sections when exposed to different situations. Furthermore, mental health is responsible for a person’s reaction to stress and other social conditions. Generally, mental health affects how a person relates to others and their ability to understand and interact with them. Therefore, problems that affect a person’s mental health affect the abilities to socialize, their feelings, moods, reaction to situations. The person experiencing mental health problem may portray different behaviors when confronted with different issues. Mental health issues have several