I recently took a course on Depression in Coursera: https://www.coursera.org/learn/public-health-depression
Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional or a researcher in mental health. I am summarizing the course I took on Coursera.
Course Summary:
- Definition of Depression: More than 2 weeks of loss of interest, loss of pleasure, loss of appetite, loss of sleep. Depression doesn't only have mental symptoms but physical symptoms as well
- Though depression is less severe the mental disorders, its cumulative negative effect is very high as it is very common. In the US its negative effect makes it one of the most detrimental disorders
- In the US about 10% of the population has been diagnosed with depressive disorder
- The causes of depression are inheritance-based and traumatic life events(loss of loved ones, financial loss, war, floods). The clear cause hasn’t been established as yet
- As we know, there is a lot of stigmas associated with mental health and depression in general. This leads to people not seeking treatment for medical health
- Another reason for not seeking treatment is the low & costly availability of medical care
- Depression is usually seen up to 3 times in females than in males
- Over the years the number of people diagnosed with depression has increased drastically, a psychologist has said we are entering the "age of melancholy". The reasons for this aren't established concretely but can be attributed to decreasing social support and high-stress jobs.
- There is a lot of misdiagnosis in depression, with over 50% of cases going undetected
- Treat of depression ranges from taking anti-depressant medicines to psychotherapy. In the recent past use of antidepressants has increased as the side effects of these medicines have been reduced