Moderate depression is a mood disorder that causes a person to feel an overwhelming sense of despair, sadness, and hopelessness that lasts for an extended period. Quite often, these emotions can follow a negative event in a person’s life, such as divorce, loss of a job, disability, or a death in the family. While circumstances like these would cause most anyone to grieve and feel somber, in cases of moderate depression, these symptoms do not usually diminish over time. On occasion, the melancholy feelings are so intense that the person who is suffering may secretly contemplate suicide.
Withdrawal from people or activities, excessive sleeping and frequent crying is quite common for an individual suffering from this affliction. While most people experience symptoms of sadness from time to time, those tormented with moderate depression usually feel these emotions consistently, over a period of several months or longer. The disorder can occur as a result of a number of factors that sometimes have nothing to do with a particular event and, instead, may be caused by a physical ailment or mental disorder. On occasion, the reason for the condition is unknown.
Those who suffer from moderate depression are frequently affected by physical symptoms that manifest as a result of the mood disorder. Headaches, digestive problems, chronic fatigue, and even joint pain, is common. Other times, physical illness can cause emotional instability, such as in cases where a patient suffers from cancer or chronic pain. An individual can often become so besieged with the limitations of a persistent physical ailment that it takes over every aspect of his or her life, and causes moderate depression.
Certain chemicals in the brain, like serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine, regulate feelings of pleasure, motivation, irritability, and other behaviors. When they become imbalanced, and the communication between neurotransmitters is altered, psychological symptoms of moderate depression can occur. Sometimes symptoms are mild, but other times the feelings are serious and people can exhibit self-defeating or self-sabotaging behavior.
Overcoming the mental disorder is often a multi-disciplinary approach, and should be addressed as early as possible to avoid progression of the condition. A combination of therapy and medications is most frequently recommended. Talk therapy with a licensed psychologist can be very helpful in determining the source of the depression, and developing coping strategies. A medical doctor or psychiatrist can suggest various anti-depressant medications, available by prescription, to help regulate the mood and often improve a patient’s quality of life.