The World Health Organization notes that over 264 million adults across the globe live with depression. In the United States, the National Survey of Health showed that 8.4% of adults above 18-years of age suffer from a major depressive condition. Clinical depression is a serious mental health condition that can be triggered due to change, loss, chronic injury or health issue, or life struggles. The feelings of depression can sometimes be overwhelming and hinder a person’s capacity to lead an active, healthy life. Below are the five signs of clinical depression:

1. Loss of energy

Depression causes energy loss because it prevents your brain from receiving signals that boost your mood. Failure to have enough sensitivity creates a hitch in acquiring energy to do diverse tasks. Low energy often prevents patients from seeing friends and engaging in social activities. In fact, many patients with depression lose interest in hobbies and things they once loved to do.

2. Appetite changes

Depression can affect your appetite by causing you to eat more or less than is your normal routine. A change in appetite is a symptom that can affect your physical well-being significantly. For example, eating a lot can make you overweight and impact overall health and self esteem, while failure to eat enough well might cause unhealthy weight loss and energy issues.

3. Sleep problems

Sleep problems can result from increased fatigue. Lack of energy will cause patients to be tired and want to sleep all the time. Experts note that sleeping more is often an escape for depression patients. But the opposite can also happen, making patients restless, anxious and unable to sleep. This may lead to insomnia or interrupted sleeping patterns during the night because of the chain of thoughts happening in the mind.

4. Mood changes

Having difficulty regulating one’s emotions and outward manifestations of those feelings is a common side effect of depression. This might result in mood swings that cause the patient to excessively sob one minute and burst out in a rage the next. Indeed, increased irritability is a common symptom of depression. Both physical and mental suffering have the same effect of making patients short-fused and irritable.

5. Self-harm or suicidal thoughts

In some cases, but not all, depression may make patients feel worthless. These thoughts and feelings are dangerous because they can fuel self harm or suicidal thoughts, as they verify a false sense of negativity about oneself, increasing the risks of worsening depression. Extreme guilt and feelings of worthlessness may be responsible for suicidal ideations and self-harm. When you or someone you know reaches this point, finding immediate help is the best action. You can talk to a psychotherapist or social worker who can recommend treatment for the condition.

Seeking immediate treatment if you or a loved one are suffering from depression is important. Thankfully there are many ways to manage depression and reduce the overwhelming symptoms. If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, doctors and therapists may recommend medications such as:

• REXULTI brexpiprazole or Fetzima levomilnacipran, which is often prescribed for major depressive disorder at critical levels.
• Abilify Maintena aripiprazole, which is an t antidepressant that has a long-lasting effect and is usually taken once daily to reduce depression symptoms
• Trintellix vortioxetine, a prescription medicine for adults, can help to treat specific types of depression.
• Mental health practitioners will often offer in person and online talk therapy to help patients learn tools to manage, monitor, and improve their mental health.