Depression is not easily defined. The classic form of depression might bring to mind a person who can’t get out of bed, plagued with discontentedness, hopelessness, and perhaps thoughts of suicide. But in reality, depression can take on many different forms and does not fit many of the culturally adopted stereotypes of depression.
When looking through the list of depression symptoms, one might notice overlap with other emotional difficulties. In some cases, anxiety can be seen as a symptom of depression depending on the thought process that goes into it. Because of this overlap, it’s not uncommon for depression to be misdiagnosed. For example, in children, a common misdiagnosis for depression is ADHD. Usually, a counselor will need several sessions with someone to get a strong grasp of what exactly a person is struggling with and to get an accurate diagnosis.
Common Depression Symptoms:
Agitation
Difficulty concentrating
Difficulty with sleep
Discontentment
Fatigue
Guilt
Hopelessness
Irritability
Isolation
Mood swings
Rumination
Suicidal thoughts
Smiling Depression
A few years ago a new term was developed that helps view depression differently. The term is Smiling Depression. Those who are afflicted with it, oftentimes appear happy and put together on the outside, but internally struggle with the negative thought processes common with depression. Those in the Smiling Depression category might struggle with poor self-esteem, have a negative view of the world, feel hopeless, and/or ruminate negatively on events from their own lives that have either happened to them or that they believe will happen to them. Many with Smiling Depression also have symptoms that overlap with anxiety.
Overcoming Depression
Treating depression isn’t a straightforward process, and those who struggle need outside help to overcome it. A therapist can help identify the specific thought processes that are occurring which lead to depressive thoughts. Next, the therapist can help identify alternative thought patterns to alleviate the symptoms.
An important aspect of working with those who struggle with depression is identifying their perceptions and interpretations. These two processes often happen in the mind automatically and are hardly even noticed. It is important to bring these thoughts into the light, as they often are not beneficial. For example, if someone applies to 10 job postings but does not hear anything back, they might interpret this as being a bad candidate, unable to get a job, and will never be successful in life. This person then might then carry around a perception of themselves that they’re un-hireable, undesirable, or worthless. This is one example of how negative thoughts, perceptions, and interpretations can lead to feelings of depression, even though there is a lot of faulty logic. The emotional brain doesn’t care about logic, but wants to create a narrative around a difficult feeling (rejection in this case) in order for the emotion to “make sense,” even when it doesn’t because there are alternative stories that would make sense in this scenario too, that don’t end with the person being worthless and un-hireable.
If you are struggling with a form of depression as identified above, I would love to partner with you on your journey to healing. If you are struggling with thoughts to harm yourself or someone else, please call 911, or go to the nearest emergency room.