Is depression always because of chemical imbalance? Or can it be self-inflicted, or self-induced depression? Just wondering bec i do find myself depressed at times .... mostly because of personal issues that I still am mad over....
Working on that issue with my therapist and it is not easy to overcome. Thanks in advance for your answers!
I have a chemical imbalance, but I have noticed through journaling and just thinking about things that my depression is more often than not caused more by life, things that would depress anyone with or without chemical issues... {once had a friend tell me I get 'a little down over things most people would blow their brains out over' so I guess I'm doing better than I think}
it can be a chemical imbalance, but often people's coping skills enable them to overcome the deficit and lead normal lives. when that doesn't happen meds can help
it can also be a thinking deficit - ie the way you handle events in your life and think about things
it can be a reaction to major trauma e.g. death, divorce etc or general ongoing stress
it can result from anxiety as well
------
also depression is something that lasts for at least 2 weeks so you can feel blue or down without being depressed
have you read the info in the stickies at the top of this forum? it has a lot of info about depression
The physical and the mental are connect. If you change your thinking, you can change your chemistry, and if you change your chemistry you can change your thinking. The book Feeling Good, by Burns is the best book I've read about how to use thinking to fight depression. I take Zoloft as well as doing that and therapy, though.
thinbefore40 , 02-21-2006 09:45 PM
campbellredhead , 03-09-2006 05:39 PM
