The Truth About Mood Disorders
Samantha Green
"Depression is just a feeling; you can snap out of it if you try hard enough"
Reality- Depression is not just a feeling, its intense sadness worst than just having a bad day. Depression is caused by genetics, life trauma and chemical imbalances, there is no way to turn it off without proper treatment.
"Depression only occurs when bad things happen
Reality- Of course a factor of someones depression can be a sudden tragic life event but that is not the only case. Minor, non traumatic events in life won't cause depression and there are other causes like genetics and chemicals.
"Postpartum depression is an excuse women use for being bad mothers."
Reality- Postpartum is just like depression in the sense that is in a chemical imbalance, not just an excuse or made up. After and during birth a woman's body is shot with many different hormones and different situations and can even occur within a year of giving birth.
"There's nothing you can do to treat depression."
Reality- False, there are many innovative medications and new therapies that can help people improve themselves and their lives. Medications known as SSRI's like Prozac and Zoloft when used correctly can help as well as many psychotherapies.
"Antidepressants and lithium can help anybody with a mood disorder."
Reality- In order to properly treat depression you need to consult with your doctor about the right medications. Its all trial error, there is no way one medication will work for everyone all the time, its about the perfect combination and the right dosage. Like in the case of Lithium which is a great drug for the treatment of manic depression, but only works in 85% of people.
"There are no outward signs of depression."
Reality- There are symptoms of depression you may be able to notice depending on the case. Ups and downs, trouble making decisions, feelings of hopelessness, change is sleep habits, and lost of interest in hobbies and day to day activities.
"Having mania is fun."
Reality- Having mania is not usually describes as "fun". It can take over your life and cause harm to you and your loved one, compulsive living and spending can cause e a strain on your day to day activities as well as the person will suffer from extreme mood swings.
"No one hallucinates while suffering from a mood disorder."
Reality- People can hallucinate when suffering from mood disorders if the wrong drug or combination of drugs are prescribed to them.
"Everyone who has bipolar disorder experiences the disorder in the same way."
Reality- Every bipolar case is different depending on the person as well as their past, present and surroundings. Everyone experiences the disorder in different way with different symptoms and everyone has a different preferred method of treatment.
"Only people suffering from depression are suicidal."
Reality- Well yes a symptom of depression can involve suicidal thoughts, not every person who is diagnosed with depression is suicidal.