Consumer Information

Major Depression

GENERAL INFORMATION:

What is it? Major depression (dee-PRESH-un) is a type of mood disorder. A mood is an emotion or a feeling. Moods affect our behavior (how we act). Your mood also affects how you feel about yourself and life in general. Depression is a sad mood that you cannot control. If you feel sad for at least two weeks, you may be depressed. Major depression is a true medical condition, just like diabetes and high blood pressure.

What are the causes of major depression? Depression may be caused by a stressful change in your life. It may also be caused by a change in the chemicals in your brain. Sometimes illnesses can cause depression. Some people get depressed during the fall or winter. Women are more likely to get depressed than men. This may be because of changes in their hormones. You may be at higher risk for depression if you have one or more of these problems:

Someone else in your family has had a mood disorder, like depression.
Being under a lot of stress.
Abusing drugs or alcohol (using them too much, or too often).
Having a major illness, or chronic (long-term) health condition. Having a medical condition also can make depression get worse.
Having a recent loss.
- Someone close to you that has died.
- Breaking up with your significant other (husband, wife, boyfriend, or girlfriend).
- Losing your job.
Having something bad happen to you, such as an accident.

What are the signs and symptoms of major depression? Depression can start slowly or suddenly affect you. Other people may see changes before you see or feel them. You may have one or more of the following symptoms:

Crying more easily.
Feeling tired all the time, or having trouble sleeping.
Losing or gaining weight without trying, or losing your appetite (desire to eat).
Having aches or pains every day.
Not caring about the way you look, or losing interest in sex.
Not wanting to be with other people.
Feeling guilty all the time.
Trouble with your thinking or memory.
Doing everyday tasks or speaking more slowly than you used to.
Feeling hopeless, and sometimes even thinking about hurting or killing yourself (suicide) or killing others (homicide).

Less often, you may have one or more of the following symptoms:

Feeling heavy or weighted down in your arms or legs.
Sleeping too much.
A big increase in your appetite.
Worrying that others will not accept you all the time.

What may be done to treat major depression?

You may be seen in a clinic or your caregiver's office. You and family members may have meetings with your caregiver. These meetings can help you and family members understand depression. Caregivers will ask you and your family questions about how you feel now. You may also be asked how you have felt in the past. Caregivers will help you talk about your feelings and teach you the best way to care for yourself. You may need to go to the hospital for other tests and treatment.
Your treatment may include therapy. During therapy, you will talk with caregivers about how to cope with your illness. This can be done alone or in a group. It may also be done with family members or a significant other. Your significant other may be your spouse (husband or wife) or a boyfriend or girlfriend.
Do not take any herbal, vitamin, or food supplements unless your caregiver tells you to. Some of these supplements may be unsafe to take with your other medicines. Your caregiver may treat you with the following medicines:
- Antidepressants: This medicine is given to decrease or stop the symptoms of depression. Sometimes it may take several weeks before you begin to feel better. Do not stop taking this medicine unless your caregiver tells you to. Caregivers may try a different antidepressant if one type does not work. You may need to take antidepressants for up to 1 year. If you have had more than two past episodes of major depression, you may need to use antidepressants longer.
- Anti-Anxiety Medicine: This medicine may be given if your depression makes you feel nervous. It may make you feel drowsy.
- Sedative-hypnotics (SED-ah-tiv hip-NOT-iks): This medicine may be given to help you sleep better at night. It is usually given for a short time. Sometimes this medicine may make you feel drowsy the next day.
Later, caregivers may change your medicine or add on a new medicine:
- Mood Stabilizer: This medicine is given to control mood changes. It may also make your antidepressant work better. You may get blood tests while taking this medicine.
- Neuroleptic (noor-oh-LEP-tik): This medicine is usually given to decrease the symptoms of psychosis (seeing, hearing, or having thoughts of things that are not real). It also decreases very bad agitation (restlessness). Sometimes it may be given to help antidepressants work better.
- Psychostimulant (si-ko-STIM-u-lunt): This medicine may be given if your depression makes you feel tired all the time.
- Thyroid Medicine: This medicine may be added to your antidepressant to help it work better.

Where can I go for support?

Accepting that you have depression is hard. You and those close to you may feel angry, sad, or frightened. These feelings are normal. Talk to your caregivers, family, or friends about your feelings. Let them help you. Encourage those close to you to talk to your caregiver about how things are at home. Your caregiver can help your family better understand how to respond to a person with depression.
You may also want to join a support group. This is a group of people who also have depression. Ask your caregiver for the names and numbers of support groups in your town. Ask your health care provider if they know about books that you can read. Reading about your illness might help you better understand it. Contact one of the following for more information:
- National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression
  60 Cutter Mill Road, Suite 404
  Great Neck, NY 11021
  Phone: 1-800-829-8289
  Web Address: www.narsad.org
- National Alliance for the Mentally Ill
  Colonial Place Three, 2107 Wilson Blvd, Suite 300
  Arlington, VA 22201
  Phone: 1-703-524-7600
  Phone: 1-800-950-6264
  Web Address: http://www.nami.org
- Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA)
  730 N. Franklin Street, Suite 501
  Chicago, IL 60610-7224
  Phone: 1-800-826-3632
  Web Address: http://www.dbsalliance.org
- National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), Public Information & Communication Branch
  6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 8184, MSC 9663
  Bethesda, MD 20892-9663
  Phone: 1-301-443-4513
  Phone: 1-866-615-6464
  Web Address: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/

CARE AGREEMENT:

You have the right to help plan your care. To help with this plan, you must learn about your health condition and how it may be treated. You can then discuss treatment options with your caregivers. Work with them to decide what care may be used to treat you. You always have the right to refuse treatment.

The above information is an educational aid only. It is not intended as medical advice for individual conditions or treatments. Talk to your doctor, nurse or pharmacist before following any medical regimen to see if it is safe and effective for you.

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