25 Amazing and Interesting Facts about Depression | Amazing Facts 4U
- The main risk factors of depression are past abuse (physical, sexual, emotional), some medications, conflict with family members or friends, death or loss, chronic or major illness, and family history.
- More than 20 million people in the United States suffer from depression in a given year.
- At some point in their lives, about one in four Americans will experience depression.
- Bipolar disorder, or manic depression, affects nearly 6 million American adults in a given year.
- Depression affects all people regardless of age, geographic location, demographic, or social position.
- About 6% of children are believed to suffer from major depression. Once a child or teenager has an episode of depression, he or she has a greater than 50% chance of experiencing another episode in the next five years.
- The average age for the onset of depression varies between 24-35 years of age, with a mean age of 27. Approximately 80% of sufferers of depression are not receiving treatment.
- Depression often presents itself in four ways: mood changes, cognitive (memory and thought process) changes, physical changes, and behavioral changes.
- Depression distorts your thinking. When you are depressed, your mind can play tricks on you. You could have thoughts of suicide. Depression also makes you selfish. All you can think about is your own pain.
- Persistent irritability and chronic pain could be other presenting symptoms of depression.
- Depression is often experienced as anxiety 65 percent of the time. It is vital to make an accurate diagnosis.
- Long-term use of some medications may cause depressive symptoms, such as corticosteroids, the anti-inflammatory Interferon, bronchodilators like theophylline, sleeping and anti-anxiety pills (Valium, Librium), acne medications some antihypertensives, oral contraceptives, and anticancer drugs (tamoxifen), etc.
- Some diseases are interconnected with depression, such as thyroid problems, heart disease, stroke, cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, obstructive sleep apnea, and chronic pain.
- Depressed individuals have two times greater overall mortality risk than the general population due to direct (e.g., suicide) and indirect (medical illness) causes.
- Abraham Lincoln first fell into a deep depression after Ann Rutledge, his first love, died. Lincoln reportedly suffered from chronic depression his entire life.
- Women are twice as likely to suffer from depression as men. Women may be at a higher risk for depression due in part to estrogen. Once men hit middle age, they may face an increased risk of depression due to the decreased level of testosterone.
- Men typically experience depression differently from women. Generally, women may feel hopeless while men may feel irritable. Women may crave a listening ear, while men may become socially withdrawn or become violent or abusive.
- Sufferers of depression are more likely to have a heart attack than those who are not depressed. Additionally, people who have heart attacks or heart surgery are more at risk for depression.
- Exercise is the easiest and least expensive cure for depression. Just walking 30 minutes a day will help you and sometimes completely alleviate your symptoms.
- Perimenopause (menopause transition) and the resulting reduced and fluctuating hormone levels can trigger depression.
- People with depression are five times more likely to have a breathing-related sleep disorder than non-depressed people.
- Patients with depression may develop agoraphobia or a fear of going out in public.
- The World Health Organization estimates that depression will be the second-highest medical cause of disability by the year 2030, second only to HIV/AIDS. At present depression ranks fourth as a cause of disability and early death.
- There is 10 times more major depression in people born after 1945 than in those born before. This clearly shows that the root cause of most depression is a modern way of life and not a chemical imbalance or genetic.
- Freud, who revolutionized the practice of psychiatry with his theories of the unconscious, postulated that depression comes from anger turned against oneself.
Visit and subscribe to our blog! Get enriching & uplifting quotes right in your inbox: www.delightfulquotes.com
