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A Picture of Depression Before the Diagnosis

© Kathy Brewis

Life before being diagnosed with a mental illness such as depression can be a very confusing time for both you and for your family and friends. In all likelihood there will be signs that there is a problem but if you are like most people, you won't be able to understand exactly what the problem is. Your thoughts and emotions are running rampant. Most of the time you feel out of control and you would be right in thinking that. Overall it is a time of misery for you and for the family and friends. Friends and family will feel helpless because they don't know how to help you.

For the person who is suffering from the illness, it is hard for them to understand that there is a problem that needs to be addressed. Sometimes they just brush it aside as having a "bad day". And women tend to blame their mood on their menstrual cycle. And while that may be true, there are other issues that could be causing the mood swings and other behavioral issues. Sometimes it can be hard to distinguish between what a person may call a bad day and depression. The difference between just having a bad day and having depression is how long you have had your symptoms. You must have at least five of the listed symptoms for two weeks for a diagnosis of depression can be made. There are many signs and symptoms of depression. As I mentioned before, these signs and symptoms can be attributed to other causes such as having a stressful time in your life or an actual physical illness. It is important that you let your doctor check you out to make sure it is not a physical illness. The changes to their personality and behavior are often very subtle so it is very hard for the actual person experiencing depression to recognize that there is something wrong. Often it is the family and friends are the first to notice that something is amiss.

Often the person who is experiencing depression will experience physical symptoms before behavioral changes. From experience I know that this is very true. Around two or three years ago when my second episode of depression had bedidn't didn't know that it had begun. I was having physical symptoms that didn't respond to treatment. Later on, after further research on depression, I realized that I had been in the early stages of depression. Listed below are some of the physical signs of depression:

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