Diabetics suffer from depression

Depression is both a cause and effect of diabetes

A study of 272 diabetic patients showed that 60% had depression


Following features were seen

• Physical inactivity
• smoking 
• Alcohol intake
• Albumin in urine

• Poor control of diabetes
• poor quality of life
• Neglect of proper diet

P.S.

• Depression remains unrecognized and hence untreated
• Diabetics will not take professional help
• They are not proactive  
• They do not complain 
• They just accept the problem and do nothing about it.

What is depression?

             

Sadness is not depression:

Sadness or grief is seen after the death of a loved one, loss of a job or the ending of a relationship. but eventually the person is able to overcome this grief and move on with his life.
"Time heals all wounds" is true for a normal person,but not for a depressed person because he is highly vulnerable to stress than a normal person..

Being sad is not the same as having depression. 

Depression can occur without any "loss" or a trigger
He feels sad even when everything is fine in his life.
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Characteristics of depression:
low self esteem,
Feels worthless
Unable to derive pleasure and enjoy
Indifferent 
Feeling of hopelessness and helplessness
All these features interfere with every aspect of a person's life and make him miserable.

Risk factors for depression

Biochemical :

There is a deficiency of some chemicals in brain which give rise to the symptoms. Anti depressants elevate the levels of these chemicals, and elevate the mood.

Genetics:
Depression runs in families. If one identical twin has depression, the other has a 70 percent chance it sometime in life.

Personality:

These people have low self esteem.They are easily overwhelmed by stress,They are generally pessimistic and more likely to experience depression.

Environmental factors:

Continuous exposure to violence, neglect, abuse or poverty may make some people more vulnerable to depression.

How Is Depression Treated?

Depression is a highly treatable illness.and hence you need not suffer needlessly. Between 80 and 90 percent of people feel better with the treatment. 

Self - help and coping

Regular exercise will improve the mood. 
Ensure a good quality sleep.
Eat a healthy diet
Avoid alcohol (a depressant).
Majority of alcoholics are suffering from underlying depression.and get habituated to drink. If depression is treated they will not feel like drinking and if they avoid alcohol it will help to improve the mood.

Depression is associated with low blood pressure 
Increase salt intake.
There is no medicine to elevate low blood pressure.

Depression is a real illness and help is available. With proper diagnosis and treatment, the vast majority of people with depression will overcome it. 
If you are experiencing symptoms of depression, a first step is to see your family physician or psychiatrist. Talk about your concerns and request a thorough evaluation. 

Childhood depression

   

Depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity. 

Often it is caused by a mixture of things.  For example,your child may have inherited a tendency to depression and also have experienced some difficult life events such as bullying in the school or sexual abuse or separation of parents,

What are the symptoms?

Irritability (not sadness)
Aggression
Aches and pains
Lethargy 
Not spending time in play                                 
Disturbed sleep and appetite
Feeling of being not loved
Bed wetting


Consequences:

Drug abuse
obesity
run away
Loneliness
Risk of heart attack in adulthood


The problem remains undiagnosed, and untreated, because the parents are not aware

If you think your child is depressed

It's important to talk to them. Try to find out what's troubling them and how they are feeling. Take it seriously. It could be a major problem.
The word depression carries a 'stigma' and it is very hard for the parents to accept the diagnosis.They need to take action and take the child to a psychiatrist.

Low blood pressure and low mood

Low blood pressure has been defined as systolic pressure below 100 mm Hg and diastolic below 70 mm Hg . ..

Chronic constitutional low blood pressure is seen in the general population. It affects quality of life, because of many symptoms. Its mechanisms are not well understood and there are no medicines to bring it to normal level. 

What's considered low blood pressure for one individual may be normal for someone else. Most doctors consider blood pressure too low only if it causes symptoms. Some experts define low blood pressure as readings lower than 90 mm Hg systolic or 60 mm Hg diastolic. If either number is below that, your pressure is lower than normal.Low blood pressure is more common in women





Low B.P. and depression

Many symptoms associated with low systolic blood pressure such as tiredness, giddiness, tendency to cry, disturbed sleep, and suicidal thoughts. These are the characteristic symptoms of depression.
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Some relationship exists between low blood pressure and depression. It does not mean that low blood pressure is causing depression.or depression is causing low blood pressure. These two conditions are commonly seen together in the same individual. There could be a common underlying cause for both these conditions, but we do not know.

What should we do?

• There is no treatment for low blood pressure, but we should treat depression to give symptomatic relief to the patient. 
• Take iron, vitamin B12 or vitamin D if there is deficiency
• Take more salt
• Avoid alcohol (strictly)
• Drink coffee
• Regular physical exercise improves mood and positive feeling

Depression is a real illness and help is available. With proper diagnosis and treatment, the vast majority of people with depression will overcome it. The first step is to see your family physician or psychiatrist. Talk about your concerns and request a thorough evaluation. .

Early signs of depression

     

• Loss of pleasure

• Joylessness

We enjoy our life, going to restaurants, movies, picnics. We plan these activities and derive pleasure. We have seen Sunset umpteen number of times, but still enjoy it again and again. We are happy to see roses. We enjoy pakodas in rainy season. Some people watch Hindi or Marathi serials on T.V. 
If they miss that time, then they watch the repeat telecast next day.

This shows we are enjoying life and not suffering from depression.But,if a person is unable to enjoy life,and does not find any pleasure for a period of 3 weeks, then he is suffering from depression, Although it is subjective, it is very 
reliable.
Diagnosis of depression does not require any tests such as 
X -ray, MRI, sonography, blood test or urine test. It is based on what the patient says.  

Then what happens?

The person does not report this to his family doctor.(what for? I do not have diabetes, blood pressure,backache, I just feel sad. what a doctor can do?) He or she may mention this to the spouse, who will brush it off as something trivial and not to be taken seriously 

If this depression is intense, then it induces some physical signs,such as neck pain or backache,tiredness,gastric upsets, This is called as somatization, (Mental distress transformed into physical  symptoms) Then the spouse and the relatives take the person to a doctor, get all the tests done,advise him to take care, and take some rest.

Physical complaints are respected but not the mental symptoms (they are all in the imagination)