Definition Of Depression

Assalamualaikum and thank you to the moderator. My name is Luqmanul Hakim Bin
Johari. First of all, I would like to begin the forum with the definition of Depression.
There are 2 definitions of Depression based on our research. Firstly, according to Dr
Ranna Parekh, M.D., M.P.H. the director of American Psychiatric Association (APA),
Depression is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how
you feel, the way you think and how you act. She stated that Depression causes
feelings of sadness and or a loss of interest in activities once enjoyed. This disease
can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems and can reduce a person’s
ability to function at work and at home.

Secondly, Depression is also defined by Proffesor William Coryell, MD George

Winokur Professor of Psychiatry and also a member of American Board of
Psychiatry and Neurology as a sad or discouraged mood that results from
emotionally distressing events, such as a natural disaster, a serious illness, or death
of a loved one. According to him also, Depression typically develops during a
person's mid teens, 20s, or 30s, although depression can begin at almost any age,
including during childhood. This statement is supported by the American National
Center For Health Statistics that 8.1 percent of American adults ages 20 and over
had depression in any given 2-week period from 2013 to 2016. This definition is
also supported by Dr Timothy Legg who is a board-certified as both a geriatric and
psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner from the Rocky Mountain University of
Health Professions and is also a licensed psychologist that depression is classified
as a disorder mood. Depression may be described as feelings of sadness, loss, or
anger that interferes with a person’s everyday activities. He also stated that people’s
may experience depression in different way such as depression may interfere with
people career and lead to lower productivity.

References
https://www.healthline.com/health/depression
https://www.merckmanuals.com/home/mental-health-disorders/mood-
disorders/depression
https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/depression/what-is-depression
 Symtoms of Depression
There are a few symptoms of depression. Firstly, according to Proffesor Coryell, a
person who suffers depression is unable to experience emotions such as grief, joy
and pleasure in normal way. This person may lose interest or pleasure in activities
that he or she used to enjoy. Proffesor Coryell also stated that a depressed person
may have intense feeling of guilt and is not able to concentrate. In addition, he
reveals that a person who suffers from depression may feel helpless, hopeless and
prompt to think about suicide and death.

Apart from that, Dr. Daniel Hall-Flavin, a board member certified in general
Psychiatry and Consultancy, Department of Psychiatry & Psychology from
University of Missouri, Kansas City stated that the symptoms of depression may
differ in terms of physical and interest. For example, he stated that a person who
suffers from depression may experience reduced appetite and weight loss or
increased cravings for food and weight gain. In addition he also stated that a person
who suffers from depression also experience unexplained physical problems, such
as back pain or headaches. In addition, Melinda Smith and Jeanne Segal who both
are psychologists and experienced health writers and editors from Harvard Medical
School institution stated that the major symptom of depression can be detected from
a person’s behaviour. For example, someone who was previously a talkative person
can become a silent person due to depression. This statement was supported by a
research conducted by The University of California, Los Angeles by implementing
De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale method. In a study on older adults with major
depression, dysthymia, or minor depression, 83% of the respondents reported
loneliness and 38% reported severe loneliness. By comparison, only 32% of non-
depressed elderly people were lonely and 4% severely lonely using the same
loneliness scale.

References
https://www.merckmanuals.com/home/mental-health-disorders/mood-
disorders/depression
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/expert-answers/clinical-
depression/faq-20057770
 Causes Of Depression
Thank you to moderator. My name is Nurizz Hakim Bin Razali. I would like to
continue the forum presentation by giving an overview about the causes of
depression. First of all, an article in the Healthline magazine February 2020 issue,
written by Dr Timothy J. Legg, PhD in Clinical Psychology from Rocky Mountain
University of Health Professions and psychiatric mental health practitioner, discuss
several causes of depression that interfere with a person’s everyday activities. The
first one is due to drug and alcohol use and misuse that lead to major or clinical
depression. Some people try to cope with their problems in life by taking synthetic or
non-synthetic drugs as they claim that it helps them to relax from tension but there is
evidence that it also brings on depression, particularly for teenagers. Same case
also applies to drinking too much alcohol. It is not recommended as it affects the
chemistry of the brain and increases the risk of getting depression. As a
psychologist, Dr. J. Legg also points out that family history contributes to one’s
depression problem. He claimed that a person who has a higher chance in
developing depression or other mental disorders, if depression runs in his family, will
eventually put others at the increased genetic risk. This can be linked to genetic
depression such as psychiatric disorders, Huntington’s chorea or other related
physical incapacity or abnormality.

Moreover, Dr. Smitha Bhandari, a board member certified in adult, child, adolescent
and forensic psychiatry in the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. Stated
that depression also can also be caused by serious medical illnesses and
conditions. It is because that the stress and worry of coping with serious medical
illnesses can lead to depression, especially if a person is dealing with medical
condition that may put his or her life at higher risk, such as chronic illness and life-
threatening illnesses, for example heart disease or cancer. A person suffering from
severe head injury, will experience mood swings and emotional problems and this
can lead to depression. Dr. Bhandari also identified that stressful and major events
such as relationship breakdown, losing jobs or income and even events like starting
new job would increase the risk of depression. Often, people tend to deal with the
problem by themselves and end up getting more depressed as things will not going
to end well for them if they try to solve the problems on their own without support
from friends and families. Their encouragement and motivation would help the
depressed person in gaining more confidence and able to manage their emotion
when dealing with particular stressful events.
REFERENCES
https://www.healthline.com/health/depression
https://www.webmd.com/depression/guide/causes-depression
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/clinical-depression/causes/

TYPES OF DEPRESSIONS
Thank you to the moderator, my name is Zulhelmi Azrie Bin Noorudin will explain
the types of depressions. Joseph F.Goldberg a clinical professor of psychiatry at the
Icahn School and director of the Affective Disorders Research Program at Silver Hill
Hospital in New Canaan, stated in his book the title of Bipolar Disorders : Clinical
Course and Outcome that the first type of depression is called Major Depression or
also called as “major depressive disorder”. People who suffer from this type of
depression tend to feel depressed most of the time for most days of the week. There
are several symptoms of his type of depression such as loss interest in doing daily
activities, always feeling tired and restless most of the days, extreme loss or gain
weight and the most obvious symptom is having thought of suicide. The way to
overcome or to manage this kind of depression is to attend talk therapy and seek for
mental health specialist or take medication liked ‘antidepressants. However, they
must follow doctor’s prescription or instructions to avoid other circumstances.

Next, the second type of depression is Persistent Depressive Disorder. If a

person is suffering depression that last for 2 years or longer he or she might
encounter the Persistent Depressive Disorder. They may have a gloomy
personalities and hardly have fun. Being overeating or not eating enough, lack of
energy, not getting enough rest or too much sleep and hardly able to concentrate
and making decisions are the several symptoms of having persistent depressive
disorder. According to Goldberg, the way to treat this kind of depression is by
attending psychotherapy, taking medication or do both of them if it is necessary
depending on doctor suggestion.

He also mentioned in this book, the next type is Bipolar Disorder. Bipolar
Disorder or usually being referred to as “manic depression” due to its unstable mood
swing that can go up and down during the depressive periods. If the swing mood
increases, people with bipolar disorder can’t control their emotion and they can
suddenly quit their jobs, spending huge amounts on credit cards and feeling tired
even after sleeping for two hours. While the opposite will happen if the mood swing
is low or having depressive mood, a person will be too tired to get out of bed and
feel hopeless. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved 3 types of
medicines to treat bipolar disorder which are Seroquel, Latuda and Olanzapine-
fluoxetine. It is highly not recommend to take traditional antidepressants.

REFERENCES
1. https://www.webmd.com/depression/guide/depression-types#3
2. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/persistent-depressive-
disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20350929

The Effects of Depression

Thank you to the moderator. I will continue the forum with the effects of
depression. According to Dr. Helen Farrell a psychiatrist from Harvard University,
people who suffer depression may have trouble maintaining a normal work schedule
or fulfilling social obligations. It happens due of changes of thinking skill. This result
in symptoms such as an inability to concentrate, memory problems and difficulty to
make decisions. One of these effects is that depressed people have a harder time
making good decisions. Depression affects the sufferer’s decision making in several
ways and leads to a poor decision, this means that the decisions lead to outcomes
that have a less positive impact on their lives over the long run. Those with
depression may consciously avoid talking about it or try to mask the problem.

According to Steven Gans, a Psychiatrist from John Hopkin University, people

experiencing depression may also find themselves preoccupied with thoughts of
death or hurting themselves. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among
young people. This occurs when they have unclear thought and mixed with their
depression would result in a deadly outcome. Suicide is the leading killer in the
United States among people ages 10 -24 and it is the second-largest killer for teens
ages 15-19. This is supported by Dr. Annette Beautrais a New Zealand suicidologist
and adjunct professor at University of Canterbury in Christchurch that a major
cause of suicide is mental illness, a very common type of depression. Even during
recovery process, there’s a 25 times greater risk of suicide. The American
Association of Suicidology reported that treatment for depression is effective 60 to
80 percent of the time.

According to Dr. Lawrence Epstein, a Specialties Pulmonary and Critical Care,

Sleep medicine from Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital feel that people who
are depressed often have trouble sleeping. Problems may range from struggling to
fall or stay asleep, being unable to get restful sleep, or sleeping too much. The
relationship between depression and sleep goes both ways, as having trouble
sleeping for any increases a person’s risk for depression. She also said, this
condition can leave them feeling tired, making it difficult to manage both physical
and mental health. Doctors link sleep deficiency to a host of health problems.
Similarly, research has correlated long-term sleep deficiency with high blood
pressure, diabetes, weight-related issues, and some types of cancer. Studies have
shown that over 16 million people in the United States have some form of
depression, and over 75 percent of people with depression have some form of sleep
disorder. Sleep disorders may also increase your risk of developing symptoms of
depression.

References
https://www.healthline.com/health/depression/effects-on-body#1
https://www.verywellmind.com/physical-effects-of-depression-1066890
https://www.hhs.gov/answers/mental-health-and-substance-abuse/does-depression-
increase-risk-of-suicide/index.html
http://healthysleep.med.harvard.edu/need-sleep/whats-in-it-for-you/mood

WAYS TO OVERCOME DEPRESSION

Thank you to the moderator, My name Muhammad Nur Affandi Bin Jaafar. Based
on our research there a few ways to overcome depression. First of all in a Lifehack
magazine health article written by Mandy Kloppers, a Psychologist/CBT therapist at
Broadmoor Hospital, some ways to overcome depression is through mindfulness
practices. She stated that a depressed mind tends to mull over all that is wrong and
worries unnecessarily about all the negative possibilities that may emerge in the
future. In order to overcome this disease, the person should practice mindfulness
such as meditation. Besides that, Mandy also stated that a person who faces
depression should listen to upbeat music. The reason is because upbeat tune can
change an atmosphere instantly and create a more positive vibe. She reveals that
by listening to music, brain chemistry can be altered and help to improve a person’s
mood. Therefore listening to music is a good way to overcome depression.
This statement supported by a study conducted by Harvard Health Medical School
that an authoritative review of research performed between 1994 and 1999 reported
that in four trials, music therapy reduced symptoms of depression, while a fifth study
found no benefit. In addition, in 2006 a study of 60 adults with chronic pain found
that music was able to reduce pain, depression, and disability.In addition, according
to Psychreg health article written by Dennis Relojo Howell, a psychologist and also
an author of blog psychologist from Philippines stated that being socialized can
help a person to overcome his depression. He said that by doing social activities
can help a person stay busy and thus help him to stop thinking about negative
feelings. This statement was also supported by Anna Freeman, a PhD student at
The Nordic School of Public Health that “Looking at different forms of psychosocial
interventions, social activities are the most promising in regard to improving the
mental health of older adults”.

References
https://www.dennis.psychreg.org/
https://www.mentalhelp.net/contributors/kloppers/
https://www.psychreg.org/latest/

Depression Treatment
There are a few treatment for depressions problem. In a conference conducted by
Harvard University Health School in 2017, chaired by Melinda Smith who has a
Masters degree in psychology and is also an experienced health writer and editor
from Harvard Medical School institution and Dr. Jeanne Segal an experienced
therapist from Harvard Health Medical School stated that the patience should seek
consultancy from psychologist and specialist in order to get the right treatment for
the disease. Psychologist commonly implement Cognitive Behavioural Therapy,
(CBT) an evidence-based therapy which focuses mostly on the way people think
about things (including their attitudes and beliefs) and the way they behave. The
treatment focuses on questioning thoughts and restructuring these with positive
ways to think about difficult situations. Behaviour therapy is goal-oriented and aims
to help patients change unhealthy or unhelpful behaviours that cause them to suffer
or lower their quality and enjoyment of life. For example, patient who are depressed
often enjoy fewer pleasurable activities and so psychologist would work with patient
to identify pleasurable activities and develop a plan to increase their participation in
them. CBT not only helps patient to understand, manage and challenge thought and
behaviour patterns, but can also provide patient with a range of useful and practical
strategies to enhance their productivity, well-being and ability to cope with various
situations in everyday life.

In addition, Dr. Segal recommended that Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)

therapy is a non invasive treatment that directs recurring magnetic energy pulses at
the regions of the brain that are involved in mood. She stated that this therapy could
provide sufficient improvements in patient’s energy and drive to enable them to
begin talk therapy or make the lifestyle changes such as improving their diet,
exercising, and building patients support network that can help preserve patients
depression recovery in the long term.

References
https://psychologyconsultants.com.au/depression-2/
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/depression/depression-treatment.htm

Conclusion
In conclusion, depression is a mental health that may be sustained by anyone,
regardless of gender, age and social status. A person may be normal from the
outside but he may feel hurt inside because “ there are wounds that never show on
the body that are deeper and more hurtful than anything that bleeds”. The society,
including family should give support to depression patients in order to help them to
overcome this disorder. A quote that is best to describe depression is “ it is like a
war, you either win or die trying ”.