At one time, probably casually, a lot of Americans have said, “I’m depressed.” We use depression to refer to anything that bums us out. But there’s a very important distinction between experiencing feelings of depression, like sadness, and having major depressive disorder (MDD). 

It’s a common misconception that living with clinical depression means feeling sad a lot. That can be part of it. But lots of people with MDD experience other symptoms, like emotional numbness and fatigue. 

Understanding major depressive disorder and its symptoms can help you look out for this condition. That means you’re able to get help when you need it, whether that’s for yourself or for someone you care about who might be dealing with MDD. 

What is major depressive disorder?

Major depressive disorder, also called clinical depression, is a diagnosable mental health condition. Its symptoms can absolutely include feelings of sadness, but they don’t stop there. People with MDD often experience:

• A feeling of emptiness
• Appetite changes
• Changes in sleep 
• Fatigue
• Guilt or feeling like a burden
• Hopelessness
• Loss of interest in things they cared about before
• Trouble concentrating and remembering things
• Weight changes

Most pressingly, some people with clinical depression have thoughts of self-harm and suicidal ideation. 

Everyone has tough days. But you can get diagnosed with MDD when you experience symptoms like these for two weeks or more. For most people, the depressive symptoms last a lot longer than that. 

If this sounds familiar, talk with your doctor or therapist. That’s doubly true if your symptoms are interfering with your quality of life, whether that’s your ability to get things done or enjoy your days. 

Living with clinical depression

If you think you might have clinical depression, you’re certainly not alone. About 8% of people across America deal with depression in any given year. 

Fortunately, the prevalence of major depressive disorder means medical experts have spent a lot of time finding ways to help. If you get diagnosed with clinical depression, you have multiple treatment options you can explore. 

Most people get the best results with a combination of treatments. As one article from the National Library of Medicine put it, “Combination treatment, including both medications and psychotherapy, has been found to be more effective than either of these treatments alone.”

Therapy

Therapy gives you an accessible option that can help to lessen your symptoms. During each therapy appointment, you work with a mental health expert to get the support you need.

That might mean exploring the cause(s) of your depressive episode (although some episodes come without any triggering event). It might mean developing coping mechanisms to help you offset the most pressing negative effects of your symptoms. Your sessions could focus on identifying and breaking negative thought patterns, too. 

In short, therapy gives you a safe space to explore pathways that could help with your major depressive disorder. 

Medication

A wide variety of medications have been classified as antidepressants.

The most common category under the antidepressant umbrella is the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). Medications like sertraline (Zoloft®) or escitalopram (Lexapro®) can help to better balance your brain chemistry by increasing the amount of serotonin it has available. For some people, this helps to alleviate symptoms.  

Others get better results from other antidepressants, including serotonin modulators like trazodone. You can work with a doctor or psychiatrist to move toward a medication that works for you.  

Newer treatments

If you don’t respond to medication, you’re not out of luck. Researchers have given this issue a name: treatment-resistant depression. And today, the FDA has cleared other options, including transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and esketamine, a form of ketamine that you take as a nasal spray. 

Getting help for symptoms of depression

If you’re living with major depressive disorder, it can be hard to take the first step toward help. So we’re going to give you a simple step one: call or email us. One of our therapists can start working with you to explore what might help you get relief and feel more life yourself again. So why wait?