What department do you see for depression?

Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
Updated on October 23, 2024
00:00
00:00

Depression can be treated clinically by visiting either a psychiatric or psychological department. The main clinical manifestation is a persistent low mood, characterized by an inability to feel joy, gloominess, and typically significant mood variations. Cognitive processes tend to slow down, resulting in sluggish thinking, slow reactions, reduced volitional activities, a passive and listless approach to life, and a lack of hope for the future. Additionally, cognitive impairments such as decreased attention, diminished abstract thinking, learning, and judgment abilities may occur. Some patients may also exhibit physical symptoms, including sleep disturbances, decreased appetite, weight loss, physical pain, and anxiety-related disorders.

Other Voices

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
1min 3sec home-news-image

Can people with depression occasionally feel happy?

Patients with depression may occasionally feel happy, but they predominantly experience low mood throughout most of their days. Patients perceive a significant and persistent sense of low spirits, pessimism, and despair. Their mood is such that they cannot feel joy, and they often seem easy to recognize by their facial expressions – furrowed brows, frowning, and looking deeply worried. Thus, these patients feel downhearted; nothing seems to interest them, they feel as if something heavy is pressing on their heart, devoid of pleasure, often crying, pessimistic, despairing, feeling as if each day lasts a year, and life not worth living. Sometimes, patients may feel that life is meaningless, hence might engage in self-harming or suicidal behaviors, blame themselves harshly, and have trouble concentrating. However, it's not that patients never experience happiness; it's just that they are in a depressed mood most of the time each day, with only occasional moments of happiness, which are relatively rare.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
55sec home-news-image

What is depression?

Depression, clinically referred to as depressive disorder, is a type of mood disorder. Its primary manifestations are persistent and significant low mood, reduced volition, and slow thinking. It is accompanied by sleep disturbances, eating disorders, low self-esteem, difficulty concentrating, feelings of guilt and self-blame. Patients do not feel pleasure or interest, sometimes feel excessively guilty, and even find life meaningless, leading to thoughts and behaviors of suicide. In severe cases, depression may also present with psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations and delusions. If these symptoms occur daily, are present most of the time, and persist for more than two weeks, significantly affecting work, study, daily life, social interactions, and family functions, then it can be diagnosed as depression. This describes the relevant clinical aspects of depression.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
52sec home-news-image

Can people with mild depression drink alcohol?

Patients with mild depression are generally advised not to drink alcohol, especially those who have sleep problems and rely on drinking to solve these issues; they are strongly urged to abstain completely. Patients with mild depression may experience mood swings, slow cognitive responses, and an inability to feel joy. They might have difficulty falling asleep or frequently wake up during sleep. Some patients might attempt to alleviate their symptoms or improve their depressed, suppressed mood through drinking. The adverse consequences of this are an increase in the severity of depression and ultimately the potential development of a substance dependency on alcohol, which negatively impacts the treatment of depression. Therefore, for patients with mild depression, it is clinically advised to forbid or reduce alcohol consumption, with abstinence being the best treatment approach.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
51sec home-news-image

How to manage mild depression

Mild depression is primarily treated clinically through self-adjustment, psychotherapy, or physical therapy. Self-adjustment often involves exercise, which can stimulate the brain to release endorphins, playing an anti-depressive role. Additionally, exercise is an effective relaxation training that can divert attention and stimulate feelings of control and pleasure. Furthermore, psychotherapy is also used in clinical settings, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy, which is crucial in helping patients identify thoughts, correct irrational cognitive patterns, and rebuild their cognitive systems. Effective training in social and other activities is also necessary to enhance social or occupational functioning. In terms of physical therapy, repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) is the main treatment method.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
1min 16sec home-news-image

Can mild depression cause dizziness?

Patients with mild depression may also experience symptoms of dizziness. These patients often come to see a doctor primarily for physical symptoms, manifesting discomforts such as dizziness, headaches, nausea, palpitations, chest tightness, heart palpitations, vomiting, sweating, and difficulty breathing, among other related symptoms. These are also symptoms of autonomic dysfunction, which are relatively common. Thus, the emotional and cognitive symptoms in these patients are often mild, while the physical symptoms are comparatively severe. Particularly, disturbances in sleep, fatigue, and diminished appetite are amongst the more prominently severe symptoms. When patients seek medical help, they often present with the aforementioned symptoms as their main complaints, and if not carefully questioned, misdiagnosis can easily occur. Therefore, for physical symptoms of depression, it is important to observe carefully as the physical manifestations are closely related to emotional changes. Attention should be given to observe and administer antidepressant therapy, which can achieve good therapeutic effects.