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Depression comes in many forms and levels of severity. But “clinical depression” is the term most people are familiar with, and is used to describe the more serious form of depression. Clinical depression’s official designation is “major depression disorder,” which identifies it as a particular type of mental disorder.

The term ‘clinical depression’ is the more popular term used to describe symptoms of MDD. But MDD is so bad that usually people so affected are totally wiped out by it. There are many symptoms of MDD and they include both physical and emotional symptoms. These can include inability to focus, a lack of self-esteem, fluctuations in weight, lethargy, sleeping all day, loss of sex drive, and sadness. Some people even become suicidal.

We often think of some forms of depression such as Seasonal Affective Disorder and postpartum depression as being separate types of depression, when these are actually “sub-categories” of major depression disorder. But for a person to be considered to have major depression disorder – no matter what other sub-types of depression they may have – they must be in a down mood for at least two weeks and have five or more of the typical clinical depression symptoms. When a person has these symptoms, he or she is definitely experiencing clinical depression and should be treated as soon as possible by trained medical personnel.

Treatments for MDD have changed over the years, but one controversial treatment is still used 70 years after its introduction: ECT or ElectroConvulsive Therapy.

There’s always new treatments being explored for treating MDD, with supporters claiming effectiveness and others denouncing their effectiveness. One treatment that has ‘made the grade’ is Light Therapy for sufferers of SAD (a.k.a. “seasonal depression”). For a long time, light therapy was considered to be a far-fetched idea.

There are other natural remedies for depression, however, that have not been as effective. St. John’s Wort, for instance, is one herbal treatment that works for some people (mild depression only) but not for others. Acupuncture falls in this category as well.

But no matter what treatment is selected, getting SOME treatment going (so as to eliminate what works and what doesn’t) is critical. People affected by Major Depressive Disorder need help, whether the treatment is CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy), medicine, alternative therapy, or a combination of all three.

Any possible physical causes for the depression should be examined first. Often the cause is a hard-to-diagnose disease, bad diet, or simply genetic – inherited predisposition to depression.

Then emotional problems should be looked into, and this includes past trauma, bereavement, any suppressed mental struggles and so forth.

So the therapist needs to be a good detective of sorts, along with being a trained therapist. Because lots of things can contribute to MDD, including a history of drug and alcohol abuse, prior sexual abuse, lack of enough sunlight, just to name a few. These are important skills to have in order to accurately identify the cause of the depression and be able to put together the best treatment program.

Chuck’s incredible survival of a suicide attempt when he was just 16 inspired him to write a book to help others. To discover more about Major Depression Disorder, go to his site at http://www.dealwithdepression.org

categories: major depressive disorder,clinical depression,symptoms of depression,manic depression,depression