"Depression: An Introduction" Notecards

#1 ≈ Quote Slide

• This quote is from a man, who shall remain unnamed, is dealing with depression. This is his story: {Read the quote ...I figured this is just how life is.} Here is a picture of a firefighter who looks very sad........Moving on.

#2 ≈ Types of Depression

• Now before I begin, I had a very broad topic. There are quite a few types of depression, so I chose three that I thought were important to know.
• ---------------------
• Major Depression (or MDD) is the most common type of depression, and occurs during a short period of time.
• Chronic Depression (or Dysthymia) is a type of depression where you experience depressive moods for a long period of time. This could range from 9-12 months to 2-4 years.
• Psychotic Depression is basically MDD, but with hallucinations/delusions/paranoia/other great things.

#3 ≈ MDD ~ Causes

• There are, among other things, four main causes for this type of depression. Biological Differences
• Brain Chemistry involving neurotransmitters that transfer info to the neurons of the brain.
• Hormones
• Inherited Traits

#4 ≈ MDD ~ Symptoms

• There are many symptoms that are a result of MDD, but here are a few of them:
• Sleep disturbances, including insomnia or sleeping too much
• Tiredness and lack of energy, so even small tasks take extra effort
• Changes in appetite — often reduced appetite and weight loss, but increased cravings for food and weight gain in some people
• Anxiety, agitation or restlessness

#5 ≈ MDD ~ Diagram

• 
• Here is a diagram from
• depression-symptoms.org, which says a lot of interesting facts about MDD:
• 1 out of 6 people...
• 32 is the average age of MDD...
• Women are twice as likely to...
• Experiences with MDD...

#6 ≈ MDD ~ Treatment

• There are a couple ways to treat MDD, one of which is to take medication in certain quantities based on your age, weight, etc. Some of these meds are "inhibitors" which is "a substance that decreases the rate of or stops completely a chemical reaction". While other meds are "antidepressants" which are used to prolong or "boost" certain chemicals such as Noradrenaline or Serotonin. These are thought to regulate your mood in a positive way.
• There is also another way to treat MDD, and that is Psychotherapy (which sounds worse than it is). Its basically talking with a psychologist about yourself to help your well-being.

#7 ≈ MDD ~ Prognosis & Cure

• For the prognosis section, the symptoms usually develop over 2-3 weeks before the onset of a major depressive episode. During this time, you could become anxious and lose your concentration and energy in what you once did. Untreated episodes can last from 6-18 months.

#8 ≈ Dysthymia ~ Causes

• There are 4 main causes for Dysthymia. The differences are as follows:
• Biological Differences
• Brain Chemistry
• Inherited Traits
• Traumatic Life Events

#9 ≈ Dysthymia ~ Symptoms

• There are many many many symptoms for dysthymia, but I will focus on a few in this list.
• Sadness and Emptiness
• Trouble concentrating and trouble deciding things
• Excessive anger
• Poor appetite/overeating
• Sleep issues
• These are the list that I believe are most effective when it comes to Dysthymia.

#10 ≈ Dysthymia ~ Treatment

• Dysthymia can be treated at home by exercising, but be careful of the amount of exercise you do. Another way to treat Dysthymia is to go through Psychotherapy, or seek help from a PCP (which is a primary health care provider), a clinical psychologist, and/or a psychiatrist. They might ask you to take some SSRIs which were previously discussed.

#11 ≈ Dysthymia ~ Prognosis & Cure

• People with this disorder experience the following things:
• Depressed mood throughout most of the day on most days
• Poor Appetite
• Low Energy/Fatigue
• Low self esteem
• Feelings of hopelessness
• There are times when the affected individuals are happier for a certain period of time, but the happiness will usually last two months. There is sadly no cure for this disease.

#12 ≈ Psychotic Depression ~ Causes

• This depressive psychosis doesn't have a known cause. However it is thought that a chemical imbalance in the brain is a factor of Psychotic Depression. However the researchers haven't identified a specific cause.

#13 ≈ Psychotic Depression ~ Symptoms

• There are many symptoms for Psychotic Depression. But here are a few:
• Hallucinations
• Delusions
• Paranoia
• Sadness
• Irritability
• The symptoms will vary when it comes to which ones are present and the intensity of each symptom. This is all depending on the person who has this type of disease.

#14 ≈ Psychotic Depression ~ Treatment

• There are a couple ways to treat this type of depression.
• Meds
• Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)
• When a psychiatrist administers electrical currents in controlled amounts through the brain, creating a seizure which impacts the levels of neurotransmitters in the brain. The side effects do include short term memory loss, nausea, headache, jaw pain, muscle ache, and severe confusion.

#15 ≈ Psychotic Depression ~ Prognosis & Cure

• When participating the recommended treatments, there is usually a full recovery in a matter of several months. But everyone is different, so there isn’t an overall cure for this form of depression.

Before the Video

• https://youtu.be/XiCrniLQGYc (Incorporar)
• Before we watch the video, I'd like to tell you a story that I wrote once. There was once a girl who instead of a black dog, (whom you'll meet in a sec) had a red bear. This bear would terrorize her when ever she did something "wrong" at night. The nightmares soon became reality to me and I see this bear in my actions and myself. He makes me mad at my loved ones. I can't stop the screaming. I hope this all ends soon. Red bear, I don't feel safe with you." That was my first day going home from a session with a psychiatrist. She said write something that make you feel bad. So I wrote about my red bear. I was only 13.
• Legenda: The Video