What is depression?

抑郁症是一种全身疾病. 它涉及到身体、情绪和思想. 抑郁会影响你的饮食和睡眠. 它也会影响你对自己和事物的感觉. 这和不开心或心情低落是不一样的. It is not a sign of personal weakness or a condition that can be willed or wished away. When you have depression, you can’t “pull yourself together” and get better. 治疗往往是必要的，而且很多时候对康复至关重要.

就像许多其他疾病一样，抑郁症也有不同的形式. 三种最常见的抑郁症类型包括:

• Major depression. This is a mixture of symptoms that affect your ability to work, sleep, eat, and enjoy life. 这会让你暂时失去行动能力. These episodes of depression can happen once, twice, or several times in a lifetime.

• Dysthymia. This is a long-term, ongoing depressed mood and other symptoms that are not as severe or extensive as those in major depression. These symptoms can still keep you from functioning at "full steam" or from feeling good. Sometimes, people with dysthymia also experience major depressive episodes.

• Bipolar disorder. A chronic, recurring condition that includes cycles of extreme lows (or depression) and extreme highs (called hypomania or mania).

What causes depression?

抑郁症没有明确的病因. Experts think it happens because of chemical imbalances in the brain. 许多因素都可能导致抑郁症, including environmental, psychological, biological, and genetic factors.

有些类型的抑郁症似乎是家族遗传的. 然而，目前还没有基因与抑郁症有关.

女性患抑郁症的几率是男性的两倍. Many hormonal factors may add to the increased rate of depression in women. 这包括月经周期的变化, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), pregnancy, miscarriage, postpartum period, perimenopause, and menopause. Many women also deal with additional stresses such as responsibilities both at work and home, single parenthood, 还要照顾孩子和年迈的父母.

许多妇女在生完孩子后尤其危险. Women experience hormonal and physical changes on top of the added responsibility of caring for a baby. These can be factors that lead to postpartum depression in some women. While the “baby blues" are common in new mothers (lasting a week or two), a full-blown depressive episode is not normal and treatment is needed.

抑郁症的症状是什么?

以下是抑郁症最常见的症状. 然而，每个人的症状可能不同. Symptoms may include:

• 持续的悲伤、焦虑或“空虚”的情绪

• Weight and/or appetite changes due to eating too much or eating too little

• 睡眠模式的改变, such as fitful sleep, inability to sleep, early morning awakening, or sleeping too much

• Loss of interest and pleasure in activities formerly enjoyed, including sex

• 增加不安和/或易怒

• 精力下降，疲劳，被“放慢速度”

• 感觉毫无价值和/或无助

• 持久的绝望感

• 不适当的内疚感

• 无法集中注意力、思考和/或做决定

• Frequent thoughts of death or suicide, wishing to die, or attempting suicide (Note: 有这种症状的人应该立即接受治疗!)

• Physical symptoms, such as headaches, digestive problems, 和/或治疗后无法好转的慢性疼痛

Without treatment, symptoms can last for weeks, months, or even years. Appropriate treatment, however, can help most people who suffer from depression.

如何诊断抑郁症?

抑郁症通常与其他医学问题一起发生, such as heart disease, cancer, or diabetes. 它也可能发生在其他精神疾病中, 比如物质使用障碍或焦虑症. 早期诊断和治疗对康复至关重要.

A diagnosis is made after a careful psychiatric exam and medical history done by a psychiatrist or other mental health professional.

How is depression treated?

Generally, 根据评估结果, treatment of depressive disorders may include one or a combination of the following:

• Medication. 有许多不同的药物可用, but it often takes 4 to 6 weeks to feel the full effects of anti-depressants. It’s important to keep taking the medicine, even if it doesn’t seem to be working at first. 在停止使用之前与医生交谈也是很重要的. Some people have to switch medicines or add medicines to get results.

• Psychotherapy. This is most often cognitive-behavioral and/or interpersonal therapy. It focuses on changing the distorted views you have of yourself and your environment. 它可以帮助你提高你的人际关系技巧, 以及如何识别和管理生活中的压力源.

• 电休克疗法(ECT). 这种治疗方法可用于严重的, 危及生命的抑郁症对药物无效. An electrical current is passed through the brain, triggering a seizure. For unknown reasons, the seizures help to restore the normal balance of chemicals in the brain and ease symptoms.

你也可以做一些事情来帮助自己. Depressive disorders can make you feel exhausted, worthless, helpless, and hopeless. Such negative thoughts and feelings may make you feel like giving up. It is important to realize that these negative views are part of the depression and typically do not accurately reflect the actual circumstances. 当治疗开始起作用时，消极的想法就会消失. In the meantime, if you think you have depression, consider the following:

• Get help. If you think you may be depressed, see a health care provider as soon as possible.

• 在萧条的情况下设定现实的目标. 只承担你合理认为你能处理的事情.

• 把大任务分成小任务，并设定优先级. Do what you can as you can.

• 试着和别人在一起，向别人倾诉. 这通常比独处和遮遮掩掩要好.

• 做一些让你感觉更好的事情. Going to a movie, gardening, or taking part in religious, social, or other activities may help. Doing something nice for someone else can also help you feel better.

• Get regular exercise.

• 期待你的心情慢慢好转，而不是马上. Feeling better takes time.

• 吃健康、均衡的食物.

• 远离酒精和毒品，它们会使抑郁症恶化.

• It is best to put off important decisions until the depression has lifted. 在决定对生活做出重大改变之前——换工作, get married, 或者离婚了——和了解你的人讨论一下. 他们会对你的处境有更客观的看法.

• 记住，人们很少会从抑郁中“突然恢复”. 但通过治疗，他们可以一天比一天感觉好一点.

• 试着保持耐心，关注积极的一面. This may help replace the negative thinking that is part of the depression. The negative thoughts will disappear as your depression responds to treatment.

• 让你的家人和朋友帮助你.

Key points

• 抑郁症是一种全身疾病. 这意味着它涉及到身体、情绪和思想. 这和不开心或心情低落是不一样的. 治疗往往是必要的，而且很多时候对康复至关重要.

• 抑郁症没有明确的病因, but doctors think it’s a result of chemical imbalances in the brain. 有些类型的抑郁症似乎是家族遗传的, but no genes have yet been linked to depression.

• 女性患抑郁症的几率是男性的两倍. Many hormonal factors may play a role in the increased rate of depression in women. 这些因素可能包括月经周期的变化, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), pregnancy, miscarriage, postpartum period, perimenopause, and menopause.

• In general, nearly everyone suffering from depression has ongoing feelings of sadness. 他们可能会感到无助、绝望和烦躁. 如果不进行治疗，症状可能持续数周、数月甚至数年.

• 抑郁症可以在仔细的精神检查后诊断出来. A medical history will be done by a psychiatrist or other mental health professional.

• Depression is most often treated with medication, psychotherapy, or cognitive behavioral therapy. 它也可以是药物和治疗的结合.

Next steps

Tips to help you get the most from a visit to your health care provider:

• 在拜访之前，写下你想要回答的问题.

• Bring someone with you to help you ask questions and remember what your provider tells you.

• At the visit, 写下新药的名字, treatments, or tests, 以及医生给你的任何新指示.

• If you have a follow-up appointment, write down the date, time, and purpose for that visit.

• 知道如果你有问题如何联系你的供应商.