- Hey everybody, today we're gonna talk about
the seven signs of depression you may not know.
But before we get into that,
as part of the better internet initiative
supported by the Fellow Americans Education Fund,
I just want to remind you that in the US,
we have an election coming up,
and it is important that all of our voices are heard.
So take some time today
and make sure that you are registered to vote.
Just takes a few seconds.
And if you're not yet registered, do it now.
Ooh, and if you plan to vote by mail,
request your ballot today.
You can check out the rules and deadlines for your state,
make sure that you are good to go.
And finally, pop your plan to vote into your schedule
so that you don't forget to do it in time.
Okay, now let's get into today's topic.
Depression is something that we've all heard about.
But remember that depression is not just having a bad day
or feeling sad for a bit, or as a result of us
not having something go our way.
Depression is much more than that.
And for many who are suffering,
it can feel like the symptoms come out of nowhere
and they last longer than a day or a passing shift
in our mood.
If you don't find interest in the things
that you used to, or have had a depressed mood
for at least two weeks or any thoughts of suicide,
please reach out to a mental health professional
in your area.
I know it doesn't feel like it right now,
but it can get better.
Now, the first symptom of depression
that I wanna talk about is irritability.
Yes, depression isn't only a sad rain cloud
or someone feeling tired all the time.
Depression can also be us getting really annoyed
with everyone around us.
We can be quick to anger and end up lashing out at people
in our lives.
All of the frustration, we may feel
over our lack of motivation and energy
or the embarrassment that we could feel
because the stigma associated with mental illness
still exists or even our annoyance with the struggle
to get proper care.
There's so much to be upset about.
And with depression, we can hold it in at first,
but it doesn't take long before we just erupt
with all the upset that we've been feeling inside.
We can end up saying things that we don't mean
and hurt those closest to us.
I've talked a lot about how depression is anger in,
but that doesn't mean that that anger stays in.
We can feel completely filled up by it,
and then it has nowhere to go but out.
The next symptom I want to address
is our inability to take care of ourselves.
I know that one maybe isn't as unknown as the first,
but it's important.
I know people make jokes or make light of people
not washing their hair or showering all the time.
And while I can agree that maybe not washing our hair
everyday is better for it, I cannot agree
with not washing our bodies
or changing our clothes regularly.
When we're depressed, this can happen.
I've had many patients and viewers tell me
just how hard it can be to keep up with those things.
Not to mention regularly feeding ourselves, balanced meals,
drinking enough water, getting enough sleep,
I know these may sound like simple things
but just know that when we are suffering from depression,
these can feel like huge insurmountable tasks.
I'm constantly talking about the difference
between mental health and mental illness
and how that mainly relates to our ability to function
in our life.
And this right here is the difference.
If we can't do what we need to do each day
to take care of ourselves,
we need to get some professional help.
The third symptom is an inability to focus, concentrate,
or even say, what's on our mind.
This symptom can lead us to be more irritable
but it can also affect our ability to do our work
or keep up with school.
We can read and reread things and still not know
what they said.
This can be so debilitating.
Many of you have told me that it can also feel
like the words just aren't there.
And that can make talking about how we feel
even more difficult.
It's like we're feeling and thinking so much,
but when someone asks us how we are
or how they can help, we can't even tell them what we need.
This can make us feel even more hopeless and helpless.
If you find yourself going through this,
please try to journal or at least bullet point
what's going on.
That way you have something that you can show someone
who wants to help and ensure that your point
and thoughts are getting across.
The fourth symptom and one that you may have heard before,
I'm not sure, is body aches.
The number of my patients that have been referred
from their regular doctor is amazing.
It's incredibly common for us to feel achy
and have what we call psychosomatic symptoms.
Meaning that our mental illness is showing itself
in a physical way like body aches.
Many of my patients will go in to see their doctor
because they think they have a cold that just won't go away.
They often report feeling tired, achy, and just not well.
But after a few tests, the doctor will ask them
about their mood, changes in sleep or appetite.
And if it sounds more like depression,
they'll usually offer them an antidepressant
and then send them my way.
And just for the record, I don't think regular physicians
should prescribe psychotropic medication,
meaning medications for mental illnesses.
We really should see a specialist
like a psychiatrist for that, but that's just my two cents.
The fifth symptom and something we've been talking about
more and more is shame.
If you didn't know, shame is often a part of PTSD,
but it can also be a part of depression, anxiety,
and many other mental illnesses.
And it's the belief that something is wrong with us.
That we are broken in some way.
And depression definitely does this
because it takes away our ability to focus,
rob us of our motivation.
It makes it impossible to see that there is any good
left in the world.
With all that going on of course we would believe
that something's wrong with us or that we aren't even able
to get better.
But what's really, "wrong with us"
is that we have a mental illness
and we need treatment for it.
Just like if we had a heart condition
we would go see someone to get help with it
so that we can feel better.
I hear all the time that many of you
feel like you aren't worth saving
or that there's no treatment that's going to work
and that you're just beyond help.
But I'm here to tell you that that is just shame
lying to you, trying to hold you back
shut you down and keep you feeling like shit.
So push back, check your facts
and know that with the right support, we can all get better.
Next up is a symptom of paranoia.
Yeah, you heard me right.
If our depression goes untreated,
we can have psychotic symptoms as a result.
And I even have an older video about this,
if you wanna watch it and learn more about psychosis
and psychotic depression, but we can have actual paranoia
as a result of our untreated symptoms of depression.
That's just another reason that if we're worried,
we are maybe depressed, we should reach out for help now
and not wait any longer.
We can also have paranoia that's not psychosis based,
but more along the lines of us constantly worrying
that people are annoyed with us.
That they're frustrated by our lack of motivation
or are struggling to reply to them quickly.
The seventh and final symptom I'm gonna talk about is guilt.
Along with our worry that we're upsetting those around us,
we can feel guilty about the fact
that we aren't able to help around the house
or do what we said we were gonna do
or even make it to work or school.
We can feel guilty that how we're doing
is affecting our children.
And many of you have told me how much of a failure
you think you are because of this.
But I'm here to tell you that once again, that's just a lie
your mental illness is telling you.
As long as we communicate what we can with our loved ones
and the people who count on us,
and this is a big and, work to get the professional help
we need, we will get through this.
You are not a failure.
You have an illness and it needs treatment, period.
We would never call someone a failure for having pneumonia
and major depressive disorder is no different.
I hope that this video helped open your eyes
about what depression could look and feel like
for those suffering.
And please feel free to add any others
into the comments down below.
Thank you so much for watching,
I will see you next time, bye.
(gentle music)