Questions to ask yourself when considering seeking help for depression:

 

Do I keep my feelings inside?

Do I harbour feelings of hostility towards others?

Do I avoid facing my feelings of sadness and depression?

Do I stop myself from getting the help that I need?

 

When you are feeling depressed, you are likely to experience a general lack of interest in everyday activities. You may also find yourself withdrawing from others, experiencing chronic fatigue, or feeling helpless and hopeless.

 

Depression seldom goes away by itself. If you are depressed, it is important that you seek help. Symptoms of depression can be both immobilizing and painful and consequently is one of the most common problems that lead people to seek psychological help. 

 

The feeling of sadness is a common human emotion. We are usually able to identify clearly the cause of such feelings and we usually recover from normal feeling of sadness within a reasonable length of time without requiring professional help.

 

Clinical depression is a severe and prolonged feeling of sadness which seriously interferes with our psychological, emotional and social functioning. Sometimes there is an obvious cause, such as the failure of a marriage or relationship, job loss, financial problems or health problems. Sometimes there is no readily identifiable cause.

 

In mild depression one feels down in the dumps, lethargic and blue. In severe depression there is an all-consuming feeling of loss, of lack, of dark despair, regret and guilt that one has done something "wrong."  One is convinced that one has reached a dead end, has run out of options, is physically sick, and deteriorating. In the throes of a stormy depression or one of total passivity and withdrawal, there is mostly no awareness of the rage that is being suppressed and denied, and one has no awareness of the unconscious destructive agendas at work. Further, if instead of acting constructively one stays passive and unaware of the very real and very serious issues behind the depression, then generally one compounds the already utterly overwhelming conviction of guilt, paralysis and hopelessness. 

 

Common symptoms of depression include feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, loneliness, abandonment, pessimism, despair and even suicidal thoughts. Low motivation, a loss of interest in most activities, a lack of sexual desire, and social withdrawal, are other symptoms.

 

Depression sometimes causes disturbances of appetite and sleep patterns. For some people appetite loss and insomnia may accompany depression. Others may overeat and sleep excessively. People who are depressed may be unable to motivate themselves to complete even the simplest task.

 

Self-empowerment and unlearning learned helplessness in a loving atmosphere of deep caring and utmost respect makes psychotherapy especially effective. It is effective because it helps restore one's natural strengths to cope constructively with the psychological exploitations, conflicts, dilemmas and faulty assumptions fueling the depression.