|
Log in
Donate To Depression Forums
Latest Forum Discussions
on: Saturday, 07 November 2009 14:42
on: Saturday, 07 November 2009 13:42
on: Saturday, 07 November 2009 12:58
on: Saturday, 07 November 2009 12:03
on: Saturday, 07 November 2009 11:45
Search
Current Poll
Find A Therapist
HOPELINE 1-800-SUICIDE
Depression & Mental Health FAQs
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated 40 million Americans living today will suffer from major depressive illness during their lives. Seasonal affective disorder is major depression that appears in the fall or winter and goes away in spring, thought to be caused by lack of sunlight.
Postpartum depression occurs within four weeks of a women giving childbirth. Most new mothers suffer from some form of the �baby blues.� Postpartum depression, by contrast, is major depression, thought to be triggered by changes in hormonal flows associated with childbirth. Catatonic depression is a rare form of major depression characterized by (at least two): Stupor, excessive motor activity, extreme negativism, peculiarities in voluntary movement, and repetition of other people's words or actions. - mcmanweb.com
Psychotic depression is a rare form of depression characterized by delusions or hallucinations, such as believing you are someone you are not and hearing voices.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, approximately 18.8 million American adults, or about 9.5 percent of the US population age 18 and older in a given year, have a depressive disorder. Depression is a chronic illness that exacts a significant toll on
America's health and productivity. It affects more than 21 million
American children and adults annually and is the leading cause of
disability in the United States for individuals ages 15 to 44.
Lost productive time among U.S. workers due to depression is estimated
to be in excess of $31 billion per year. Depression frequently
co-occurs with a variety of medical illnesses such as heart disease,
cancer, and chronic pain and is associated with poorer health status
and prognosis. It is also the principal cause of the 30,000 suicides
in the U.S. each year. In 2004, suicide was the 11 th leading cause of death in the United States, third among individuals 15-24.
According to the World Health Organization, depression is presently on track to becoming the world's second-most disabling disease (after heart disease) by the year 2020. Depression is responsible for some $87 billion a year in lost productivity in the US (a conservative estimate), and according to Bank One, is responsible for most lost work days in its employees after pregnancy and childbirth. Additionally, one million people worldwide die by their own hand, most as a result of a mood disorder. Finally, the linkage between depression and a host of physical illnesses makes it arguably the world's greatest killer.
Research presented at the 56th Annual Conference of the Canadian
Psychiatric Association shows a marked link between bipolar disorder
and migraines. The odds of migraine in persons with bipolar disorder were 40% higher than the general population. Data
obtained from 36,984 people aged 15 and over, who screened positive for
manic or depressive episodes with migraine, were compared against those
who screened positive for mania but who didn�t suffer from migraines. Amongst
males, 14.9% of those with manic episodes were also diagnosed with
migraines compared with 5.8% of the general population. Amongst
females, 34.7% had both migraines and bipolar disorder compared with
14.7% who only had migraines.unquote.gif While the research was
skewed towards persons who were already diagnosed with bipolar
disorders, what does it mean for people who suffer from migraines but
who may have an undiagnosed bipolar disorder?
Migraines and headaches aren�t fully understood but the manifestations are very real and debilitating for their sufferers: Throbbing pain Nausea Heightened sensitivity to light or sound Seeing dots, wavy lines, flashing lights, or blind spots Difficulty with speech, sensation, or movement
An estimated 2.1 million
American adolescents have experienced major depression within the last
year, according to a new comprehensive government study. Researchers
surveyed more than 67,000 young people ages 12 to 17 and found that one
in 12 had suffered from serious depression in the previous year.Nearly
13 percent of girls had struggled with depression, compared to less
than 5 percent of boys. Odds of depression increased with age -- just 4
percent of 12-year-olds experienced depression but that climbed to 11
percent for older teens.
Think you can help?
Do you have expertise in a particular area such as Psychology, graphic/web design, journalism, public relations, IT, (Web Geeks Needed!) or fund raising? We need your assistance volunteering for DF. We're always looking for additional forum and chat moderators as well, keeping DF the safe haven it has always been for our members. If you're interested, this would be a wonderful way of giving back to DF. Contact Forum Admin for more details.
|
Depression Forums Welcome's you!
Newsworthy
  Pretending Happiness?Rescuing women and men from the quicksand of difficult relationships.
By Harriet Lerner, Ph.D.
No
one aspires to be phony, or hang out in a relationship where they can't
be real. Surely no amount of pretending can substitute for connections
to caring people with whom you can deepen and refine the truths you
tell about yourself over time.
But it's also true that moping
around and feeling sorry for yourself-although it may be absolutely
necessary at a particular time-can lead to more of the same. And simply
smiling can help. Spiritual
leaders and peace activists, encourage us to smile often and notes that
the act of smiling relaxed the muscles of the face and has many
benefits. His work has inspired many people to smile as part of a
spiritual practice. Sometimes
I encourage my clients to engage in
creative acts of pretending, not to run from the truth, but rather to
discover new truths. Pretending joy or happiness can be a
self-fulfilling prophecy, helping us discover or enhance our capacity
for these positive feelings. by Lindsay, 2009-09-27 18:00:00 More...Q. What is wrong with me? I have what I think are anxiety problems.
About five years ago, I was diagnosed with ADD. I never experienced any
sort of trauma, that I can remember. I get this horrible feeling and it
builds up, until I start crying uncontrollably and hyperventilating.
I’m also abnormally shy. I feel that same sort of anxiety when I have
to talk to people, even people I’ve known for a long time. I don’t
usually look people in the eye when I speak. I feel very nervous about
a lot of things, and I’m tired of making any mistakes, big or small,
and people’s reactions to them. Please tell me, is it possible that I
have some sort of disorder? by Lindsay, 2009-11-01 16:00:00 More...Dogs Are Wonderful Stress Relievers

Canine Friends to the End
Sep 21 2009 -- Dogs are great stress
relievers for their human companions. Although this has been recognized
by individual dog owners for millennia, the scientific evidence about
the psychological benefits of having a dog around first confirmed about
30 years ago when a psychologist, Alan Beck of Purdue University and a
psychiatrist, Aaron Katcher of the University of Pennsylvania, measured
what happens physically when a person pets a friendly and familiar dog.
They found that the person's blood pressure lowered, his heart rate
slowed, breathing became more regular and muscle tension relaxed-all
signs of reduced stress. A
recent study published in the Journal
of Psychosomatic Medicine not only confirmed these effects, but showed
changes in blood chemistry demonstrating a lower amount of
stress-related hormones such as cortisol. These effects seem to be
automatic, they do not
require any conscious efforts or training on the part of the stressed
individual. Perhaps most amazingly, these positive psychological
effects are achieved faster-after only five to 24 minutes of
interacting with a dog-than the result from taking most
stress-relieving drugs . Compare this to some of the Prozac-type drugs
used to deal with stress and depression, which alter the levels of the
neurotransmitter serotonin in the body but can take weeks to show any
positive effects. by Lindsay, 2009-09-27 13:30:00 More...
Seasonal affective disorder (SAD)
Seasonal affective disorder (also called SAD) is a type of depression
that occurs at the same time every year. If you're like most people
with seasonal affective disorder, your symptoms start in the fall and
may continue into the winter months, sapping your energy and making you
feel moody. Less often, seasonal affective disorder causes depression
in the spring or early summer.
Don't brush off that yearly feeling as simply a case of the "winter
blues" or a seasonal funk that you have to tough out on your own — you
may have seasonal affective disorder. Treatment for seasonal affective
disorder includes light therapy (phototherapy), psychotherapy and
medications. Addressing the problem can help you keep your mood and
motivation steady throughout the year.
by Forum Admin, 2009-10-30 11:30:00 More...*BREAKING NEWS* A first look at the new public service announcement that
addresses the stigma of mental illness.
Starring award-winning actress
Glenn Close and directed by Ron Howard, this PSA marks the launch of the "Bring Change 2 Mind" campaign, a nationwide effort to raise
awareness about the toll of the stigma associated with mental illness in our
communities. NARSAD has partnered with Ms. Close and "Bring Change to Mind" to
support their work against stigma, and to bring to the public the latest
research on effective treatments for mental illness. by Forum Admin, 2009-10-20 20:30:00 More... New Breakthrough Could Be Why Some
Antidepressants Do Not Work For YouStressful Life Events Are a Major Cause of Depression
What causes depression has been
oversimplified, resulting in drugs that treat stress but not
necessarily depression, according to a new research.
October 27, 2009 2:58 PM PDT -- Depression researcher Eva Redei presented research at the Neuroscience 2009 conference in Chicago this week that calls into question two tenets of depression science:
that stressful life events are a major cause of depression, and that an
imbalance in neurotransmitters triggers depressive symptoms.
For decades, drugs have been developed around these beliefs, leading
to antidepressant medications that are actually designed to relieve
stress. But stress-related genes have almost no overlap with
depression-related genes, reports Redei, the David Lawrence Stein
professor of psychiatry at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. (Full disclosure: Northwestern is my alma mater.)
That means those antidepressants work if you're stressed, but not necessarily if you're depressed.
"This is a huge study and statistically powerful," Redei says. "This
research opens up new routes to develop new antidepressants that may be
more effective. There hasn't been an antidepressant based on a novel
concept in 20 years." by Forum Admin, 2009-10-30 11:00:00 More...Life Does Get Better!
Depression can go away and you won't always feel like you do
now!
I joined this forum looking for help and advice which I
found in abundance but I also wanted someone to tell me that there is light at
the end of the tunnel and that depressive feelings can be reduced or go away
completely. I hope that my story can give some advice but also let people know
there is light at the end of the tunnel. 
by inside_my_head, 2009-10-30 13:00:00 More...
Member Testimonials

QUOTE (anthony84 @ Sep 4 2009, 08:57 PM) *
HI. My name is anthony. I'm 24, single and a student. I've been dealing with depression and anxiety for about a year now. I've never taken any medications before only doing some CBT. My mood has greatly improved, but I'm still having some recurrences. I think this is a wonderful site and found a lot of useful information here, thanks. :). Anyway, first time posting just saying hi. lol :)
Cheers; anthony (anthony84)
Recent Articles
- By Lindsay
- Published 09/27/2009
- Bipolar

"Only a small proportion of bipolar
disorder patients switch from mania to depression"
Depression Switch Rate In Bipolar Mania ‘Low’ MedWire News: 24 September 2009
Only a small proportion of bipolar
disorder patients switch from mania to depression, say European
researchers in findings that suggest atypical antipsychotics may
protect against the switch to depression.
Switching in mood
polarity in bipolar disorder patients has been identified as a
predictor for poor long-term outcomes. However, while the switch from
depression to mania has received a great deal of attention, the risk
for switching from mania to depression is poorly understood.
Eduard
Vieta, from the University of Barcelona, and colleagues therefore
examined data from the 2-year, prospective, observational European
Mania in Bipolar Longitudinal Evaluation of Medication study on 2390
patients who took part in the maintenance phase of the investigation,
which lasted for up to 24 months.
- By Lindsay
- Published 07/25/2009
- Depression FAQ's

A group of researchers proposes the definition for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) should be shortened to
include only mood and cognitive
symptoms.
If accepted, the 35-year-old definition found in the Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) would not include symptoms
that are associated with medical illness.
The proposal is based on a study that appears in the online first edition of the journal Psychological Medicine .
The current definition of major depressive disorder includes nine
symptoms — a definition that has remained essentially unchanged since
the 1970s.
Aug 7, 2009 - According to new research, college students with depression are twice as likely as their classmates to drop out of school.
However, the research also indicates that lower grade point averages depended upon a student’s type of depression.
There
are two core symptoms of depression—loss of interest and pleasure in
activities, or depressed mood—but only loss of interest is associated
with lower grade point averages.
“The correlation between
depression and academic performance is mainly driven by loss of
interest in activities,” says Daniel Eisenberg, assistant professor in
the University of Michigan School of Public Health and principal
investigator of the study.
Educated Parkinson's Patients Rely on Meds
Sooner For Control Of Their Symptoms TUESDAY, July 14 -- Parkinson's disease patients
with higher levels of education or disability typically need treatment for
their symptoms earlier than other patients, a new study finds.
The study included 413 patients with early, untreated Parkinson's
disease who took part in clinical trials of experimental drugs. The
patients were assessed at the start of the trials and monitored to see
when they needed to start treatment for their symptoms.After one year, 200 of the patients had started symptomatic treatment.
Those who had higher levels of disability and impairment at the start of
the study were more likely to experience rapid disease progression. The
researchers also found that higher levels of education were independently
associated with earlier treatment.
Cry For Help - Hamilton HighThe PBS Special Aired April 29th, 2009 Executive Producer, Edie Magnus April 20th, 2009
The Film: Exploring the Emotional Lives of Teenagers
Edie Magnus, Executive Producer
Dr. Chris Lucas, head of child psychiatry at New York University’s School of Medicine, says it best:
“People
only seem to pay attention when there is a major event and when a large
number of kids die suddenly together. Whereas kids are dying all the
time through gun violence or…though suicide, and there is not much
attention paid to that.”
Seasons
IPB Calendar
Talk To A Counselor
|
This Month In Pictures
Members Online
180 Users Online: 167 Guests 0 Anonymous 13 Visible: Necromancer, Spiffyfirefly, AngelOfTheMoor, Gussie, Cim, becky101, Deepster, americandownunder, Yosemite, r_kage, Katbera666, frangipani, iowa, |
Medical News
A Potpourri of Mental Health Articles
Mental Health Parity News
Suicide Prevention Llifeline
Our Soldiers & Veterans
Andertoon
Depression & Mental Health FAQs 2
What is Clinical Depression? Clinical
depression can affect your body, mood, thoughts, and behavior. It can
change your eating habits, how you feel and think about things, your
ability to work and study, and how you interact with people. Clinical
depression is not a passing mood, a sign of personal weakness or a
condition that can be willed away. Clinically depressed people cannot
"pull themselves together" and get better. Depression can be
successfully treated by a mental health professional or certain health
care providers. With the right treatment, 80 percent of those who seek
help get better. And many people begin to feel better in just a few
weeks.
Depression a Big Factor in Poor Health World Health Organization Finds Depression Often Goes Untreated By Salynn Boyles WebMD Medical News Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD Sept.
6, 2007 -- Depression has a greater impact on overall health than
arthritis, diabetes, angina, and asthma, but it all too often goes
unrecognized and untreated, a report from the World Health Organization
(WHO) suggests. more... Depression a Big Factor in Poor Health
For Additional Information About Depression Write To: The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 8184, MSC 9663 Bethesda, MD 20892-9663
For free brochures on depression and its treatment call: 1-800-421-4211. or visit: http://www.nimh.nih.gov
Link To Us
Please use the image below and the code provided to link back to us
Advertisement
Depression Forums would like to hear from you!
Depression Forums would like to hear from you!
Mental illness affects one in seventeen Americans. We
would like to invite you to share your story about
your Depression, as breaking the silence will help us to break open the
stigma surrounding mental health that keeps people from getting the
care that continues misunderstandings about those affected by mental
health disorders.
There is nothing better than to speak out, tell your story and get the word out! There is hope! Together, we can help ourselves and others. Warm Regards, ~Lindsay and The Depression Forums Administration Staff
Att: Mental Health Professionals
Take advantage of
this excellent opportunity
to promote your practice, research, career
and
expertise.
Depression Forums, Incorporated is now starting a
Therapists Directory so that we will offer to our members
access to a searchable database of Mental Health
Professionals and facilities Nationwide dedicated to
providing treatment services and support for
those with mental health disorders.
List your individual or group practice in
Depressionforums.org's
Therapist's Directory
and help prospective clients and referral
sources learn more about you and the services you offer.
Communicate in detail your unique credentials and expertise.
Contact Forum Admin.
Write For Us!
If you would like to volunteer to write for our DF blog as to what is going on @ depressionforums.org, then just go ahead and get in touch with us by PMing Forum Admin and we’ll get back to you at the earliest.
edclogo
|