What Is Depression?
Now before starting a discussion on reactive depression, it’s important to know about depression, so our expert from Online Assignment Help will now explain to you what is depression? Depression is one of the most common diseases worldwide and it is one of the leading causes of disability. It has been observed that, people more than 12 years of age can be the sufferer of depression. From a research finding as forwarded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC, it has been found that more than 7.5 % of people who are above 12 years of age suffer from depression for almost two weeks. The scale of the issue is getting increased with time. The World Health Organization has defined depression as one of the most common diseases observed in people worldwide and it is one of the major reasons behind the disability.
As per the World Health Organization, more than 350 million people worldwide have been affected by this disease. From several shreds of evidence, it has been observed that depression is commonly observed in women as compared to men. The symptoms of depression include lack of interest in things, joy, social interactions, and happiness. People suffering from depression can suffer from mood swings and feel uncomfortable in social interactions. Investigations and research have been conducted so far, but exact causes of depression not what are identified.
There can be a complex combination of biological, genetic, psychological, and environmental factors resulting in depression. Depression is basically a mood disorder which is characterized by persistent mood swings and low mood and feeling of lack of happiness and interest.
Depression can last for more than 6 months to a maximum of eight months. Consultation with a medical practitioner or a doctor or a psychologist or a mental health specialist can help in diagnosing depression. The treatment of depression also needs attention on a priority basis so that the sufferers do not have to suffer for a longer period. If the exact causes of depression get identified then it becomes easier for the health specialists to treat depression and help the patients to come back to normalcy and social life quite easily. In many cases, depression is not detected initially and the patients suffering from depression tend to become isolated and suffer because of insufficient medical intervention.
The role of family members, friends, colleagues, and community in treating depression and the persons suffering from depression is quite significant. Accurate differential diagnosis needs to be ensured so that the person suffering from depression can be provided with effective and secure treatment. In treating depression, the doctors generally ask about the case history or for the past of the patients to identify the symptoms and course and treatment. Some doctors take the help of questionnaires in assessing the severity of depression.
The Hamilton depression rating scale is often used by the doctors in assessing depression severity. In this rating scale, 21 questions are there with resulting scores which describe the severity of depression condition. The Hamilton scale is considered to be one of the most successful and widely implemented assessment instruments by the clinicians in rating depression severity. This scale also helps the doctors in identifying the accurate reasons behind depression and to recommend suitable treatment procedures. Sometimes people confused between fluctuations in mood and depression. But in normal life, and an individual can suffer from fluctuations in the mood for frequent mood changes. But it does not imply that the person is suffering from depression.
There can be emotional responses on a temporary basis which could be the biggest challenges to regular life but these changes do not contribute to depression. Sometimes a person suffering from grief because of death of any close one suspected to be suffering from depression. But it is not depression rather it is a temporary emotional response to the deaths of any close person. Bereavement can be related to depression. When a loss is followed by depression, the psychologies term it as complicated bereavement. Now Assignment Help UK will tell you about the reactive depression.
Reactive Depression
Common symptoms of reactive depression include stress, fatigue, depressed mood, anxious mood, and pain. There can be several treatments of reactive depression depending on the similarity of the condition. Reactive depression is also termed as a situation of depression which is a short-term type of depression where stress is the main factor. Reactive or situation of depression can take place after an individual suffered any traumatic event or series of dramatic events. It is a type of adjustment disorder.
It can make an individual face after difficulties in adjusting to a regular lifestyle following a major traumatic event. The events which are the main reasons behind situational or reactive depression includes work issues, illness, death of any loved person, moving, and relationship issues. The normal symptoms of situation or reactive depression includes sadness, lack of enjoyment, hopelessness, regular crying, feeling anxious, constant working, stressed out, sleeping this difficulties, disinterest in food, trouble in daily activities, trouble focusing, feeling overwhelmed, avoiding social interactions and situations, not taking care of vital aspects of life, and thoughts at suicide.
Situational or reactive depression can take place because of certain stressful events or traumatic incidents in life. Stressful events can be positive or negative. But any kind of stressful events can give rise to situational or reactive depression. Relationship issues such as marital problems or divorce or regular altercations can give rise to a reactive depression.
Causes of Depression
The major causes behind depression include genetics biological factors environmental and psychological factors. There are certain social factors which are also responsible for depression. People can suffer from depression because of, biological factors, environmental and psychological factors, and social factors. There can be certain risk factors which are included in depression such as life events including work-related issues, divorce, bereavement, relationships with family and friends, financial issues, acute stress, and medical concerns.
The persons suffering from several personality-related risk factors such as life trauma or less effective coping strategies become more susceptible. Genetic factors include first-degree relatives with similar depression can increase the risk in the members of the same family. Childhood trauma also gives rise to depression. Recreational drugs including abuse of alcohol and other drugs like amphetamines can impact depression to a great extent. An individual can also suffer from depression if any head injury has taken place in the past. Chronic pain syndromes in the case of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease depression can be highly observed.
Symptoms and Signs Of Depression
The main symptoms and signs of depression includes at different modes, reduce interest in activities or pleasure in in social activities, unintentional weight loss, low appetite, psychomotor agitation, pacing up and down, restlessness, delayed psychomotor skills, slowed speech, fatigue loss of energy and enthusiasm, feeling of guilt, feeling of guilt, worthlessness impaired ability to concentrate or thing for making decisions, and recurrent thought of suicide or death.
There are several cases where the person suffering from depression has been observed to have attended result reactive depression is one of the categories of clinical depression. It is an inappropriate depression state which is precipitated by any events in an individual’s life arising as a result of severe life events. Reactive depression is observed in the case of any abnormal grief.
Causes of Reactive Depression
Situation changes like having a baby or retirement or going away to school can also give rise to a reactive depression. Financial issues like negative financial condition or monetary issues for unemployment can also lead to a reactive depression. In the majority of the cases, the death of any loved person gives rise to reactive depression to a great extent. Social issues also contribute to this illness. Life-death experiences such as natural disaster, physical assault, come back, etc. can also increase reactive depression chances.
Chronic medical illness such as diabetes can also give rise to a reactive depression. A person living in an endangered location in the neighbourhood can also become quite vulnerable to a reactive depression. Past life experiences sometimes impact the way an individual is dealing with stress level. A person can be at higher risk of reactive depression is he or she has gone through substantial stress during childhood. Any kind of existing mental health issues also leads to reactive depression. Difficult life circumstances also give rise to reactive depression. Biological factors such as abnormal structures in the brain, hormonal abnormalities, and changes in genetics can also lead to a severe reactive depression.
Symptoms of Reactive Depression
Some other symptoms of reactive depression include behavioural or emotional symptoms which develop within 3 months following a stressful event. An individual can feel more stress after that stressful life event. The stress can cause severe issues in interpersonal relationships. The stress can also impact work or education negatively point depression symptoms which are not caused by any kind of mental health disorder, can also be symptoms of reactive depression. The normal grieving process cannot be considered as a symptom of reactive depression. These symptoms have been highlighted by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. In the majority of the cases, the death of any loved person can cause reactive depression. But it is very important to identify whether it is normal grief or reactive of depression because symptoms of grief and depression very often overlap each other.
Most commonly observed symptoms of reactive depression include agitation, anxiety, sadness, and hopelessness. Weight fluctuations are also commonly observed. Digestive issues along with headaches are also common symptoms in case of reactive depression. A person suffering from reactive depression can lose every kind of faith in life. Life becomes meaningless and hopeless for that particular individual. Individuals with reactive depression lose enthusiasm in doing regular work like attending office or school for paying bills. People with reactive depression also feel hopeless and do not develop the feeling of joy and happiness and participation in any kind of social activities. There can be some serious symptoms of reactive depression. People with reactive depression at a severe level can become addicted to drugs or any other substance abuse or can also develop thoughts of suicide.
Some of the most potent symptoms of reactive depression are a feeling of despair, anxiety, sadness, and short-temper. The other symptoms are sudden fluctuations in the weight of the victims and headaches or digestive problems. A person suffering from reactive depression feels that there is no meaning in his or her life and there is often a suicidal or self-hurting tendency in some of the victims of situational depression. In this regard, we have been able to learn that there is no exhaustive list of symptoms arising out of reactive depression as these symptoms are often manifested in the case of grief or other types of depressions.
Differences between Reactive Depression and Other Forms Of Depression
Depression that is caused by stress and is of short-term in nature is referred to as situational or reactive depression. This can occur after a person has gone through a trauma in his or her life. It is often counted as an adjustment disorder. Let us imagine that we are currently going through a difficult stage in life. At this stage, we might feel that we are not able to move ahead with our life normally. We might feel as if we are tired and we do not have hunger and we are constantly fatigued and there is a feeling of emptiness in us.
These are the symptoms of reactive depression which is also known as situation and depression. It is not to be confused with grief which is something different and it is quite different from other types of depression though some of the symptoms are common. One of the major differences between reactive depression and other forms of depression is that situational depression occurs out of a typical situation that has happened in the life of a person. For other types of depression, they can occur due to a variety of factors and not just due to a particular situation.
Often, various biological factors might lead to depression and it does not necessarily have to occur due to something happening in a person’s life. Situational depression generally does not last very long like other types of depression that can go on for years if not effectively controlled and managed. Reactive depression can be considered as a form of clinical depression that generally lasts for a few months. However, it can traumatize the person or the victim quite severely. Reactive depression is quite different from other types of depression as it is caused solely by a specific agent that encompasses an event that is extremely painful and successful to bear with for the victim. In a case that you need more help or guidance on this topic or any other topic of any subject, experts from Instant Assignment Help are always there for you to provide you proper guidance so that you score best in your assignment.