Is this depression, or not?

Post Reply New Topic

Does depression have to be a super constant thing to count as "legit" depression?

Recently I've had more instances than usual where I find myself crying/not wanting to do anything/not being able to focus/lacking energy/irritable. These instances have been more frequent; however, they are still isolated within days that are happy days overall.

When I am at school, I don't feel sad (I guess because my mind is occupied with my classes/the social life that I actually do have, FINALLY). However, when I am at home, I find that I lack motivation and in general feel down a lot of the time.

Am I just lazy, or is this actual depression?

to have depression you have to have low mood for most of the time for at least two weeks straight. you sound like you are having normal ups and downs. i'm sorry your home life isn't more satisfying.

signs of low mood:

crying, feeling blue
feelings of guilt or worthlessness
too much or too little sleep
eating too much or too little
wanting to kill yourself
no enjoyment in things you'd normally enjoy (anhedonia)
lack of motivation
irritability

Even when you really are depressed it can be hard to tell. I'm not saying you are. I honestly can't tell if you're depressed or not just from a post on the internet.

I have had moments where I'd wonder if I was really depressed or just too lazy to get out of bed in the morning. I'd wonder if it's my fault and I'm not just sick. Even after I attempted suicide I was a little bit surprised by the diagnosis of Major Depression. I thought I was just lazy. I thought there was a reason for my constant low mood that was external and I couldn't believe there was anything wrong with my brain. It turns out there was/is.

Depression is a weird illness in that it has so many varying characteristics that it isn't exactly the same for everyone who suffers from it.

As Cathlylynn has already said (sort of) it can make some people sleep excessively but other people who get depression experience the opposite. They get insomnia. Some people eat excessively while others completely lose their appetite.

The thing I'm getting at is that I've read the people who sleep and eat excessively while suffering from depression are experiencing atypical symptoms.

Here's a link with some information about atypical depression: Wikpedia: Atypical Depression

The thing with mood reactivity is that it's a double edged sword. You can be clinically depressed and still experience a positive response to good things happening. And you can be diagnosed with depression when you are atypical. The problem is that you also react more intensely to negative things especially personal rejection. Increased sensitivity to rejection can be debilitating.

This only makes things even more confusing I know.

From the description you gave, it sounds like "life". Nobody is happy, motivated and focused 24/7. In general, when you have depression, the suffering tends to be a lot more intense and long-lasting and it prevents you from enjoying things you would normally enjoy.

That said, it can't hurt taking a look at why you're sad when you're sad and whether there's something you could do about it.

I often feel low at times, but it is different from actual depression. When I have depression (have been diagnosed several times, currently in remission), I feel like there is no point in life, no reason to get up in the morning, my brain feels numb or over-emotional, I cry for no reason, I don't engage in my usual activities and I even have trouble loving my pets which makes me even more depressed!

To be diagnosed with depression, it has to be consistent 'down-ness' (I'm making up words tonight) for weeks, not hours or days. If you are going to school and genuinely feeling better, then you probably aren't clinically depressed, you might have 'situational' or 'environmental' depression. I was suffering from environmental depression earlier this year as I was being badly treated by care workers and lost my place at college. The reason I specified 'genuinely' feeling better is because even when I am in a seriously deep depression I have been known to even convince myself that I am actually okay! Most of the time though, this is not the case and although I look super happy (sometimes a little too super happy), I might be feeling agonising pain in my mind.

So I'm not saying yay or nay because I am not a diagnostician and I don't know you or your life situation, but I hope that clears it up a bit.

_________________
I have HFA, ADHD, OCD & Tourette syndrome. I love animals, especially my bunnies and hamster. I skate in a roller derby team (but I'll try not to bite )

How do you feel at school though? I mean depression isn't all about feeling sad...sometimes you can just feel kind of numb, like you can't quite enjoy things but you can do so enough to kind of go through the motions. Sometimes having stuff to occupy yourself can drown it out a bit at times so its not so noticeable, but if its always persisting aside from that I think it is likely you could have depression.....though it also depends on if its impairing your ability to function.