
Depression can arise because of a specific stressor or event in your life, or it could come out of the blue. If you’ve been experiencing symptoms of clinical depression, visit Elena Gherman, MD, at Full Moon Behavioral in San Antonio, Texas. Dr. Gherman is a board-certified psychiatrist who excels in helping patients recover from depression using a holistic, integrated approach. Call Full Moon Behavioral today to schedule a consultation or book an in-person or telemedicine appointment using the online tool.
request an appointmentWhat is depression?
Depression (major depressive disorder) lowers your mood, so you’re always down, despairing, and unable to see a way out of your misery. Without treatment, depression can be devastating and, in some cases, lead to suicide.
Everyone feels blue now and again or has a bad day. It’s also perfectly understandable to feel miserable when things go wrong in your life or when you experience trauma like a relationship breakdown or bereavement.
If you’re healthy, these moods and feelings pass in time. It could take weeks or months to get over a severe trauma, but gradually, you go through the grieving process and adjust. However, if you have clinical depression, those negative feelings never leave, and more often than not, they progressively worsen.
What are the symptoms of depression?
Common symptoms of depression include chronic fatigue, weepiness, and a loss of interest in life and the things that usually make you happy. You might have problems concentrating or thinking clearly and go off your food or overeat. Typical feelings when you have depression include:
- Sadness
- Worthlessness
- Hopelessness
- Self-loathing
- Guilt
Depression affects everyone slightly differently. For instance, some people become insomniacs, unable to sleep much. Others have nightmares and disturbed sleep, waking up exhausted. Depression can make you feel sleepy all the time, so you spend many hours asleep.
When you have clinical depression, negative feelings aren’t under your control, so there’s no way to shake them off. It’s essential to seek help for your depression from Dr. Gherman as soon as possible.
Why do I have depression?
Depression’s causes are complex and hard to pin down, but changes in the brain chemicals controlling mood (neurotransmitters) are often involved.
Depression is more likely to affect you if other family members have mental health problems, so genetics is influential. Your environment, stress, trauma, and many other factors also play a role in triggering depression.
How is depression treated?
Patients with milder forms of depression often benefit from counseling or psychotherapy alone, but for many people, a combination of talking therapies and medications produces the best results.
Dr. Gherman prepares a treatment plan for your depression after reviewing your symptoms. She may prescribe antidepressant medication to reduce symptom severity and enable you to benefit from psychotherapy.
Don’t let depression take over your life. Call Full Moon Behavioral today or book an in-person or telemedicine appointment online.