Depression is classified as a mood disorder which causes a continuous feeling of sadness, anxiety, and loss of interest in activities that they otherwise used to enjoy. It is also known as Clinical Depressive Disorder. It affects the way an individual feels, experiences, thinks and perceives.
It is a common yet a serious medical condition which affects your life negatively. It can be incredibly crippling for the person that’s suffering from it. But it’s a treatable psychological condition. It doesn’t have to take control of your life.
Depression generally occurs due to factors such as loss of a loved one, loss of job, break-up, broken marriages and other life events. The term depression is confused with momentary sadness. Although resilience plays a major role in the upliftment of the mood, however, it can be difficult for a depressed person to be resilient. It’s not easy for them to find things that they can be happy about in their lives since the depression creeps into their lives so strongly.
5 not-so-noticeable symptoms of depression
A sudden outburst of weight
When a person is depressed, most people don’t realize that there can be a sudden weight gain. This can be due to an increase in the amount of food that they consume. This increased intake of food increases the level of serotonin production in the body. Over the course of time, it affects the metabolism. This is where a sudden gain in weight happens. This is compounded by the fact that the person suffering from the disorder will feel guilty.
Loss of emotions
It becomes very difficult for someone who’s suffering from depression to express emotions easily. They can’t tell whether they are sad, happy, numb, or even anxious.
Most people have a zeal to socialize, work, exercise, go out etc., but that’s something that people suffering from depression don’t have. They tend to become antisocial, which eventually leads to them worsening their condition.
Glued to virtual life
Depressed people mostly spend their time online because they want to be away from people in real life. It can either be their way to cope with their emotions or to escape from them altogether.
Studies confirm that people who use social media extensively and engage in virtual interactions face depression in real life. They could be using virtual companionship since they’re deprived of real human relationships and companionship.
Although this method is considered as a defense mechanism, it’s not something that can help them recover from depression.
Indecisiveness
Psychologists suggest that when depression strikes, our cognitive processes and capabilities fall backward. Even simple decisions such as pushing or pulling the door become quite difficult to understand.
Self-grooming comes to a halt
Depressed people go days without combing their hair. A survey conducted in 2014 concluded that more than 60% of the population had poor oral health conditions during their phase of depression. This can lead to further health problems.
