Depression

Depression can take many forms. The bottom line is that depression is a serious illness that involves the body, mind, and spirit. It affects the way we eat, sleep, how we feel about ourselves, and the way we think. A depressive disorder is not the same as a passing blue mood. It is not a sign of personal weakness or a condition that can be willed or wished away. People with a depressive illness cannot merely "pull themselves together" and get better. Without treatment, symptoms can last for weeks, months, or years. Appropriate treatment, however, can help most people who suffer from depression.

Heart failure and depression are related. Depression may independently worsen heart-failure outcomes.

Heart Failure

Heart failure, also called congestive heart failure, is a life-threatening condition in which the heart can no longer pump enough blood to the rest of the body.

Need some help but feel squeamish going to a shrink? Now there is an Internet answer that promises confidentiality and first rate information.

It is called Treatment Online and it claims to provide psychological support and evaluation in a totally confidential, individually customized, and user controlled experience. The evaluation tools focus on depression, Anxiety, and ADHD, but also cover many other commonly occurring psychological syndromes.

Stress, anxiety, and depression prevent healthy sleep patterns by making you too alert or making you sleep too much. Some prescription and OTC drugs can cause insomnia. The list of reasons why people experience insomnia is a long one, including a change in our sleep patterns as we age.

A 53 year old Maryland psychiatrist, Dr. Peter Gleason, was arrested, and later charged for doing something that has become common among doctors: promoting a drug for purposes other than those approved by the federal government.

One in ten children under the age of 15 is suffering from mental illness and the prevalence of mental disorders is on the increase, according to a report published June 19, 2006 by the British Medical Association.

The British Government was urged to employ more psychotherapists to help people with mental health problems get back to work.

Researchers, led by Professor Lord Richard Layard of the London School of Economics Centre for Economic Performance's Mental Health Policy Group, published their findings in the Center's Depression Report on June 21, 2006. Lord Layard said an expansion of psychiatric services would pay for itself by cutting the cost of unemployment.

According to an article in the New York Times, June 21, 2006, New Orleans is experiencing what appears to be a near epidemic of depression and post-traumatic stress disorders, one that mental health experts say is of an intensity rarely seen in this country.

Researchers in Germany and Sweden have written a white paper about their work showing that olfactory dysfunction has a severe impact on quality of life.

"When the sense of smell is lost," they say, "it is not just that it becomes a difficult task to differentiate between cardboard and a hamburger, but also a sense is lost which alerts us to dangers from fire or rotten food. An even more profound impact becomes apparent considering that this sensory system may even contribute to the selection of a spouse. However, having said all this, it is probably the enjoyment of what we eat or drink that is most dearly missed when the sense of smell has been lost."

As women age, their responsibilities usually lessen: they have more time for themselves; they become happier; and have less depression. Jane Ussher, Professor of Women's Health Psychology at the University of Western Sydney believes that women are being told that they need medication for PMS, post-natal depression and menopausal stress because their bodies are not functioning properly when in reality their problem is not hormonal, but social.