Depression

We all feel down from time to time - feelings of sadness are quite normal. We can feel down, or miserable, 'in a mood' but depression is where one feels this to a greater extent - for no reason whatsoever. Stress can certainly lead to these feelings: pressures of work or no work, finances, relationships or no relationships, family worries. However, what is different about depression is that these feelings are out of our control, they happen out of no where and are inside of us.

Symptoms of depression could be;

Being unable to feel good doing the things that normally would be pleasurable.
Losing interest in normal activities, work, hobbies and everyday life.
Feeling restless, irritable, tense and anxious.
Feeling tired all of the time and having no energy.
Difficulty sleeping or waking early in the morning, or even getting out of bed in the morning. Nightmares can also be a factor.
Having a poor appetite or using food to self medicate feelings.
Spending a lot of time thinking about what has gone wrong, what will go wrong or what is wrong about yourself as a person.
Loss of interest in sex or thinking about it to much.
Brooding and ruminating about things. Black or white thinking patterns.
Having difficulty in concentrating, starting one thing and before you know it your doing something else.
Losing self-confidence.
Avoiding other people.
Finding it harder than usual to make decisions.
Feeling useless and inadequate
Feeling bad about who you are and what you have done.
A sense of hopelessness - that nothing will make things better.
Feeling that life isn't worth living. Suicidal feelings and thoughts.

Clinical depression is about how we interpret reality, based upon our personality types and thinking styles. When someone broods or ruminates about negative things, this focus of attention on the bad/sad things in life will almost certainly affect how they feel. A downward spiral begins and so continues to fuel the negative thinking.

E-mail: stephen@spalding-hypnotherapy.co.uk