hello everybody how y 'all doing today it is
currently 1 55 a .m and it is 42 degrees outside
and while it may not seem like it's all that
cold it is still pretty cold as it is already
now I know y 'all have been waiting for me to
come back on another podcast or another short
bit from my radio station, but a lot of things
have been going on as well as school and otherwise.
Hey, we all got a life and we have to live it.
So when stuff happens, you take care of it. So
for the next couple of days, we're going to be
talking about simple topics such as depression.
I'm sorry, depression. Can't talk this morning.
ADHD and otherwise. What it is. and how to avoid
it and or overcome it as well as other main issues
such as dealing with being followed self -defense
or even rape come on these are actual topics
people should be discussing and talking about
but nowadays they don't give much emphasis on
whatsoever either way tonight's topic is going
to be on depression that's what we're going to
talk about tonight this is what i want you to
think about this is my tidbit for today depression
depression depression what is depression depression
or rather a depressive disorder is a common but
yet serious medical illness that negatively affects
how you feel the way you think how you act you
know fortunately it's also treatable you know
depression causes feelings of sadness as well
as a loss of interest in activities once enjoyed
It can lead to a variety of emotional, even physical
problems. It can decrease a person's ability
to function, whether they're at work or even
at home. Things that people don't really consider.
Things that, even a mild case of depression to
a severe case can cause even some of the most
messed up. side effects such as feeling sad or
having a depressed mood like I mentioned before
lost of interest or pleasure and activities that
you used to enjoy another thing that can be caused
from depression is changes in appetite weight
loss or gain related to dieting trouble sleeping
or in some people's cases believe it or not sleeping
too much as well as a loss of energy and or increased
fatigue you know it Also causes, I mean, before
I keep going, basically depression is not, how
do I put it? While it is normal to have to go
through this at some point in your life, it is
not normal to stay in that state. Okay. It also
increases purposeless physical activities, you
know, such as hand wringing, pacing, slowed movements,
or even slowed speech. You know, actions that
can be seen by other people, but not normally
by the person who's in depression. You know.
Basically, in this state, you're feeling worthless,
basically guilty, if you will. You have a difficulty
thinking, concentrating, or even making decisions.
And in the worst case, you're thinking about
death or suicide. Hopefully, you're not. So for
those out there who actually have to deal with
depression, and I'm really sorry that you have
to, you know, most symptoms can be diagnosed,
you know, at least two weeks. of the actual event
starting, okay? While they have, you know, medical
conditions can also result from depression as
well. And while it's not, like I said before,
something that's good, while it may seem like
it's not all that bad, with the worst possible
case being death or suicide, medical conditions
can also arise from this, such as thyroid problems,
some people's cases, brain tumors, or even worse.
Yet, vitamin deficiency can be caused from just,
you know, basic symptoms of depression, you know.
So, even if someone has it and it doesn't seem
all that bad, and most people will tell you just
to let them go through it, they'll get over it,
that is not always the best answer or the best
case scenario. Sometimes it's better to be there
for that person and help them out, okay? We're
going to take a short intermission here. Then
we're going to go into things that cause depression.
All right? All right. Getting back on topic here.
Depression. It basically... Hold on. Let me give
you a little bit of statistics here that I found
on this topic. Depression affects... you know
an estimated 1 in 15 adults that's like a 6 .7
percent in any given year okay and one in six
people usually about a 16 .6 percent will experience
depression at some time in their life like i
said before depression can strike at any time
but on average it first appears during at least
the late teens to like the mid -20s and is more
likely in women than men um as far as studies
have shown they show about about a third of the
women will experience a major depressive episode
in their lifetime at some point in time you know
and keeping in with the thought here that i mentioned
before you know depression is different from
sadness grief or even bereavement okay keep this
in mind you know things that cause it and how
bad it is or how much it affects that person
is what you have to consider Simple things like,
don't worry about it, it's going to be okay,
won't work on people who are in depression, unfortunately.
As a matter of fact, this could actually end
up making the situation worse. As far as things
that cause depression, the death of a loved one,
loss of a job, or ending of a really bad relationship
are really difficult experiences for some people
to endure. It's normal for feelings of sadness
or grief to develop in response to such situations,
but those experiencing loss often might describe
themselves as being depressed. Well, in other
words, or rather, how do I put this? but being
sad is not the same as having depression. The
grieving process is natural and unique to each
individual and shares some of the same features
as depression, but both grief and depression
may involve intense sadness and withdrawal from
usual activities. They are also very different
in many ways. In brief, painful feelings come
in waves, often intermixed with positive memories
of the deceased. In major depression, mood and
or interests, such as pleasure, are decreased
for most of two weeks. Also, in grief, self -esteem
is usually maintained. However, in major depression,
feelings of worthlessness and self -loathing
are very common. Like I mentioned before, in
grief, your self -esteem is still there. However,
when you're depressed, you basically feel as
worthless as a bum on the side of the street.
For some people, the death of a loved one can
bring on major depression, and losing a job or
being the victim of a physical assault or major
disaster can lead to depression for some people.
When grief and depression coexist, the grief
at the same time existing with the depression
is way more severe and lasts longer than grief
without depression. Despite some overlaps between
grief and depression, they are very very different
and distinguishing between them can help people
get the help and support they need for the treatment
of that you know there's a lot of risk factors
for depression depression can affect anyone even
a person who appears to live in a relatively
ideal circumstance you know several factors can
play a role in depression their biochemistry
their genetics personality or even the environment
can factor into different roles that can cause
or even create an issue where depression can
exist okay and you know it can be treated however
there are a couple of cases where that hasn't
been true where a mental issue has been caused
from the depression in which some people just
can't recover Let's take biochemistry for an
example. Biochemistry, as far as that's concerned,
it's basically the differences of certain chemicals
in the brain. They may contribute to the symptoms
of depression, whereas in genetics, depression
could run in families. For example, if one identical
twin has depression, the other has a 70 % chance
of having the illness sometime in their life
as a possibility. And then there's personality.
People with low self -esteem already, who are
easily overwhelmed by stress, or other easily
strainable emotions, who are generally pessimistic,
appear to be more likely to experience depression
than most others. Then there's the environment.
Continuous exposure to violence, neglect, abuse,
poverty, yes, even poverty, may make some people
more vulnerable to depression than others. This
is a thing. Depression is among the most treatable
of mental disorders as far as most others are
concerned, and between 80 % and 90 % of people
with depression eventually respond well to treatment,
so it's not all bad. Almost all patients who
gain some relief from their symptoms Before a
diagnosis or treatment, health physicians should
usually conduct a diagnostic evaluation, including
an interview and possibly a physical exam, just
to make sure that, in some cases, a blood test
might be done to make sure that the depression
is not due to a medical condition, like a thyroid
problem, like I mentioned before. The evaluation
is to identify a specific symptom. medical and
family history even cultural values as well as
environmental um like i mentioned you know to
arrive at the diagnosis and help them plan a
course you know they have medication for certain
things you know brain chemistry may contribute
to an individual's depression and may factor
into their treatment as well keep this in mind
you know for this very reason antidepressants
might be prescribed to modify one's brain's chemistry
but they are not how do i put it they're not
sedatives or uppers or even tranquilizers okay
and they're not habit forming most of them are
i can't speak for all of them as they currently
have keep they have newer and newer versions
of the antidepressants that come out okay but
what they're supposed to do is have no stimulating
effect on on people not experiencing depression
either so as far as they're concerned it shouldn't
even become addicting after certain usages okay
they may produce some improvement within the
first week or two of use however you won't see
any full benefits until after about two to three
months okay if a patient feels little or no improvement
after several weeks you know they altered they
can alter the dose and a medication or even substitute
for something totally different altogether in
some situations psychotropic medication may be
helpful okay but you know it depends on the type
of depression that you have okay and then there's
talk of also psychotherapy as well as electroconvulsive
therapy however while these two may be ideal.
Again, I don't recommend them at all. The electroconvulsive
therapy is basically kind of the same as a person
having a seizure, but it's basically stimulation,
brief electrical stimulation in the brain, you
know, a certain area, like an anesthesia shot,
if you will. It's been used since the 1940s,
but they stopped using it after a while, after
people started seeing it as being inhumane. um
and as well as psychotherapy well in that case
it's more or less how do i put it talk therapy
you know sometimes uh used alone for treatment
of mild depression it's for moderate to severe
depression it's often used in along with antidepressant
medication as cognitive behavioral therapy it
has been found to be very effective in treating
depression so well the medication may not be
your best bet so you don't like me taking me
a medication psychotherapy might be the best
thing for you okay