Depression Clinic

Anxiety, stress and lack of energy can make you feel miserable or down. What is different about a depressive illness is that these feelings last for a long time rather than just for a few days and can become overpowering making life difficult to cope with. The feelings can last for weeks, months or even years.

There is no test for depression eg. brain scan or blood test. The diagnosis can only be made from the symptoms and this is done on the basis of a discussion with a doctor.

One useful way to help recognise depression is to use a system called FESTIVAL. This is a list of common symptoms. If five or more of these symptoms are present for more than two weeks, it is likely that a depressive episode is occurring. The symptoms are as follows:

Feeling: Depressed, sad, anxious or bored.
Energy: Tiredness, fatigue, everything seems an effort, slowed movements.
Sleep: Waking during the night or too early in the morning. Oversleeping or trouble getting to sleep.
Thinking: Slow thinking, poor concentration, forgetful or indecisive.
Interest: Loss of interest in food, work, sex and life generally.
Value: Reduced sense of self-worth, low self-esteem or guilt.
Aches: Headaches, chest or other pains or palpitations without a physical basis.
Live: Not wanting to live, suicidal thoughts or thinking of death.

People are reluctant to seek help for many reasons. It can be hard to recognise that your feelings about problems have moved from the realm of the ordinary stresses and strains of life into a depressive illness. The deterioration in mood can be gradual. In the early stages of depression, you may not feel depressed at all. Tiredness, inability to sleep, anxiety, poor concentration, feeling apathetic and even physical illness are common symptoms.

When depression is classed as moderate, feelings become more severe and may include feeling bleak, depression, loss of interest and slowness of thinking.

In the more severe stages, people may become withdrawn and unable to cope with life including daily tasks like washing and eating. Severe depression may also include delusions and hallucinations. However, outward appearances can be misleading. The person dealing with mild depression may feel as miserable as someone with severe symptoms that are more obvious to the outside world.

Your GP is the first port of call if you think you may have depression. They can diagnose and treat different types of depression. If the diagnosis is not clear or the person is particularly ill, a referral to a psychiatrist may be necessary.
Counsellors and psychotherapists may also be involved in treatment, either in conjunction with the GP or the psychiatrist.

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