The Question Is – Why Am I So Depressed?

Why am I so depressed?  Well – what a question that is!  How is it that so many of us around the world ask ourselves that very question?  It doesn’t really matter which country you are from or what age category you are in, the same old question keeps cropping up – Why am I so depressed?

What If The Things In My Life Seem Fine?

You could be forgiven for asking this question when on the face of it, things appear to be fine.  To many onlookers your life may look to be OK.  You are in a loving and supportive personal relationship, you may even have children.  You appear to have friends and family members around you.  You are fully employed and earning sufficient money to look after your family and pay the bills.  Yet you still find yourself wondering if you are depressed.  Does any of this scenario sound familiar?  Possibly the exact details are not the same but the general theme is present.  I am sure you understand my meaning.

Is There An External Or Internal Force At Work Here?

When it comes to the complex and delicate subject of depression, in general, we believe that external factors or forces do not necessarily have a direct or immediate impact on your feelings.  The research scientists tell us that it is much more complicated than just assessing the external factors that are impacting upon our lives at any given moment.  Perhaps, more important, are the internal factors and forces that are going on within us!  Maybe it has something to do with how we deal with these external factors from the perspective of our inner self.  Often, without our conscious knowledge, we endure a whole range of emotions and stresses.  It is thought that these feelings and emotions that we cannot really “pin down” lead us down the path of questioning if we are infact depressed or not! The outcome is that without really knowing or controlling what is happening to us, we can experience both physical and mental symptoms of depression.

What Is Going On?

Throughout our life we are subject to changing environments and circumstances that we are not able to control.  These changes can be wide reaching and totally disruptive.  Typically they include events such as suffering a bereavement of someone close to you, experiencing redundancy or the breakdown of a relationship such as a divorce.  These traumatic changes can happen quickly and our ability to adapt is tested to breaking point.   It is only natural for us to want things to remain the same in our lives, but this is rarely the case.  How we adapt and ultimately deal with these changing circumstances can have a significant impact on our daily lives.

What Is Depression?

Depression is often described as a mixture of psychological and physical conditions that can manifest in a recognizable set of symptoms. Commonly it can present as a low mood level or in a feeling of profound sadness. These depression symptoms can be associated with a decreased activity level in parts of the brain.

Here are just some of the depression symptoms that are easy for you to recognize in yourself or others who are close to you:

 

• Low mood levels or feelings of sadness.
• Lack of joy or interest in activities that may well have been joyful or happy previously.
• Pessimism or the feelings of pessimism.
• Feelings of guilt without any substantial or reasonable reasons to feel guilty.
• Thought and feelings of inferiority, often for no real or appreciable reason.
• Irritability and heightened levels of grumpiness.
• Slowness or perhaps a noticeable slowing down in the thought process.
• A slowness in interpreting and reacting to sensorial stimuli.
• Slowness or lethargy of the digestive system, or other internal physical processes.
• Slow or labored physical reactions.

More detailed information can be gained form Depression Help Online.

It is well known that events and certain circumstances associated with traumatic changes and unpleasant situations in our past lives can bring on episodes of depression.  The key to this whole situation regarding depression is our thinking patterns.  Depression is largely caused by the way we think about things.  We need to examine our internal dialogue and be very careful about what we tell ourselves!!!

Where Does Depression Come From?

Pinpointing where the depression comes from is not always easy.  If we are able to look for past circumstances or sets of events it will often help the process. Individuals might require help in this area.  There is plenty if information available to help with the research if the individual is so inclined.  Alternatively you could seek the assistance of a mental health specialist.

Perhaps the most important factor in dealing with depression is for the individual sufferer to become aware of their thinking patterns.  When learning how to fight depression the sufferer must pay close attention to the type of thoughts they have.  They must be careful and vigilant about what they say to themselves internally.  They must, wherever possible try to change negative thought patterns and ideas into positive thoughts and outcomes.

Conclusion

Beating depression is not easy and I sympathize with all of you who are going through this process.  However, instead of dwelling on the negative in any given situation try to picture a more optimistic scenario.  None of this is easy – I know because I have been there myself!

I have not gone into too much detail about the chemistry behind depression, neither have I dealt with the many types of depression.  All of these important questions are dealt with elsewhere within the pages of this website.  What I have tried to do is to answer the question – Why Am I So Depressed?