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How
To Tell Sadness From Depression |
by:
Mr.
Dave Turo-Shields, ACSW, LCSW |
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Title: HOW TO TELL SADNESS FROM DEPRESSION
Author: Dave Turo-Shields, ACSW, LCSW
E-mail: mailto:editor@overcoming-depression.com
Copyright: by Dave Turo-Shields, ACSW, LCSW
Web Address: http://www.Overcoming-Depression.com
Word Count: 740
Category: Mental Health
HOW TO TELL SADNESS FROM DEPRESSION
You have and will experience sadness. It
might be the loss
of a job, pet or a loved one. Yes, even
a loved one. The
trouble is, particularly here in the United
States, we have
a quick-fix for everything... why not sadness
too?
Our quick-fix for sadness is that it's simply
not allowed.
Healthy purging of sad feelings is great
for you physically
and wonderful for your mental health. When
you stuff the
expression of healthy sadness it may lead
to health
problems, interpersonal issues and depression.
So, the first lesson is FEEL your sadness
over whatever
issue is at hand. It doesn't make you weak
or less a man
or woman to do so. Yes, I have to say "woman"
today too,
because women have also begun to place the
same negative
meaning on expressing feelings of sadness;
so they hold
back too.
There are Five Basic Stages you will go
through with a
significant change or loss in your life.
They are:
1) Shock/Denial
2) Anger
3) Asking "What if..." questions
or making "If only" statements.
4) Sadness
5) Acceptance
Please keep in mind several points about
the five
statements made above. First, each one is
NORMAL! You may
cycle through the steps several times and
may not do so in
the order listed above.
The only time these steps become a problem
is when you
become stuck at a particular step. Here's
an example.
I met a woman about a year ago. She'd been
married over 25
years. She and her husband were planning
on traveling
after he retired. He died within a year
of retirement from
cancer. She came to see me three years after
his death.
She had become stuck at step 3 above. She
questioned, over
and over again, whether she had done everything
she could
for him and all their family during those
last days before
his death. After about a year of ruminating
minute-by-
minute, she became quite seriously depressed.
Then later,
she was referred to me by her physician.
We worked through her questions from step
3. She then went
through a normal period of being angry over
the loss of her
husband and how that had changed her life
and retirement
plans. She felt appropriately sad about
the loss of her
best friend.
She's not terribly happy about working,
but she's been
working full-time now for about six months.
She is hoping
to begin dating. She's insecure about it.
"It's been so
long since I've dated!" She quips. But,
she is on her way
to a new life and her level of acceptance
is growing each
day.
Other times depression may set in from a
traumatic event,
or a series of negative life events that
overlap and
overwhelm your usual ability to cope. If
this is you, you
are often bewildered as to why you can't
simply shake out
of it as you normally would. Or if it was
a trauma event,
you will often find that simple security
issues (e.g.,
walking out into a dark parking lot at night
after
shopping) will trigger panic and later deep
depression.
Sudden trauma threatens your sense of general
safety in the
world at large.
If you are wondering if you have Major Depression
here are
some guidelines to help you to the correct
answer. For the
best possible solution please seek professional
evaluation.
I offer professional consultation for individuals
through
email, making this step easy and convenient.
MAJOR DEPRESSION SYMPTOMS:
1) Depressed mood nearly every day.
2) Diminished interest in regular activities.
3) Significant weight loss or weight gain.
4) Sleeping difficulties.
5) A feeling of being "slowed down."
6) Fatigue and energy loss nearly every
day.
7) Feeling worthless or excessive and inappropriate
guilt.
8) Difficulty in staying on task or making
decisions.
9) Frequent thoughts of death, including
but not limited to
suicidal thoughts.
Having a few of these symptoms does not
necessarily qualify
your for the diagnosis of Major Depression.
You need to
have at least five symptoms consistently
over a two-week
period of time or longer.
If you decide you have Major Depression
please confirm this
with a depression screen which you may find
on my website
at http://www.overcoming-depression.com/depression-symptom.
html Additionally, please consult your family
doctor and a
trained professional who specializes in
depressive
disorders. A family doctor can assist in
ruling out a
possible medical condition and a therapist
knows how to
assist you in digging yourself out of that
deep depression
rut.
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Dave Turo-Shields is an author, university
faculty member,
success coach and veteran psychotherapist
whose passion is
guiding others to their own success in life.
For weekly
doses of the webs HOTTEST success tips,
sign up for Dave's
powerful "Feeling Great!" ezine at www.Overcoming-
Depression.com
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dave Turo-Shields is an author, university
faculty member, success coach and veteran
psychotherapist whose passion is guiding
others to their own success in life. For
weekly doses of the web's HOTTEST success
tips, sign up for Dave's powerful "Feeling
Great!" ezine at www.Overcoming-Depression.com
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