When someone is suffering from depression and loneliness, they need support.
These are not emotional issues to be trifled with.
Everyone can have points in their lives where they are feeling down or alone but when these feelings become chronic and are persistent, then there is a need for intervention.
They are not problems that a person should be ashamed of or have to hide.
They should be addressed by professionals who can help take care of a person’s mental and emotional health.
Suffering in silence simply means that depression and loneliness will have little chance of improving.
Get Psychological/medical help when you are feeling bad or lonely
When someone says they are down or lonely, they often are talking about a passing feeling.
We all get feeling bad or left out at times.
However, there are people who are truly struggling with both depression and loneliness on an everyday basis.
For people who are in this situation, they need to seek treatment with a professional if they hope to get and handle it and stop it from affecting their mental health.
Loneliness and depression or feeling bad are not the same thing but can certainly affect each other a create a cycle that is hard to escape.
Defining Depression and Loneliness
First, it is important to understand what depression and loneliness are.
Without understanding them, it is hard to get the correct help in place.
Depression, unlike loneliness, is a diagnosable mental health issue.
It is treatable but can certainly cause some significant problems for those who suffer from it.
Depression means that someone is feeling sad and can have a loss of interest in things they used to enjoy doing.
Clinical depression can range from general malaise to major depressive disorder.
Being depressed can lead to various emotional and physical issues that can affect how a person gets along both at work and at home.
Common symptoms of depression can include:
- Feelings of sadness and being down
- Loss of interest in things that used to be enjoyed
- Changes in eating habits – emotional eating or not eating
- Disruption of sleep patterns – either too little or too much
- Loss of energy – tiredness
- Anxious behavior
- Feelings of worthlessness
- Difficulty concentrating or make decisions
- Suicidal thoughts
These symptoms need to be present for at least 2 weeks to be diagnosed as depression.
It should be noted that grief and depression are not the same things.
Bereavement may turn into a depressive episode or a major depression but that is only a possibility, not an actuality.
Those who may be affected by depression do not always show they are struggling and may not be able to pinpoint it themselves.
Causes of depression can come from different areas:
- Biochemistry – this means that chemicals in the brain may play into how an individual is affected by depression.Serotonin and norepinephrine are two of the chemicals that can throw the brain chemistry out of wack.
- Genetics – If there is depression in a family member, there is a chance that it can be handed down from generation to generation.Siblings, parents and grandparents are all at higher risk if a family member has been diagnosed with depression.
- Personality – People who struggle with low self-esteem, who are anxious or easily overwhelmed or tend to be negative in their general life outlooks are more likely to have depression.These personality traits can signal a higher chance of having depression.It could also work in reverse that those that have depression tend to attain these personality traits.
- Environmental Factors – If a person is continuously exposed to violence, neglect, abuse or poverty they may become more prone to being depressed.This is where we find issues with emergency responders and those in active military duty who are constantly bombarded with these issues.The higher rates of death and suicide within the members of these services would show this causation.
Loneliness is the sense of being emotionally alone.
You can be in a crowded room or have a big family that you live with and still feel lonely.
People need meaningful social contact and rewarding relationships to not be lonely.
While many people enjoy being alone and are not lonely, being alone all the time is not healthy and can lead to feelings of loneliness.
While loneliness is not defined as a mental health problem on its own, it can be exacerbated by mental health issues when they cause you to withdraw from meaningful relationships.
Symptoms of loneliness can include:
- Inability to connect with people emotionally – a feeling of distance or disinterest
- No close or intimate friends may have lots of acquaintances or workmates
- Being overwhelmed with the feeling of isolation even when out or in contact with others
- Having feelings of self-doubt or low self-esteem – feeling unworthy
- Difficulty reaching out – socializing can be exhausting
While knowing the symptoms of loneliness is important when seeking treatment, knowing what may trigger it helps as well.
- Grief – losing someone close feels like there is a void in life
- Relationship ending – this can be a marriage, girlfriend/boyfriend, a family falling out, loss of a good friendship
- Retirement
- Loss of job
- New school or workplace
- Moving far from family and friends
- Being a busy single parent with no time for a social life
- Belonging to a marginalized group based on race, sexual orientation or disability
Next Steps of the depression cause of loneliness
Now that there is an understanding of what depression and loneliness are and who they affect, what are the next steps in to help yourself or another heal from these two issues?
How do you go about getting psychological or medical help when you are feeling chronically down or lonely?
The first step is to see your medical doctor.
They can talk to you about your symptoms and what the best treatment plan will be as you approach these issues.
Both depression and loneliness are treatable with between 80-90% of those who seek help responding to treatment.
It is very rare that people do not get some sort of relief from them with symptom treatment.
Before you head down the road of seeing a mental health professional or working with a support group, your doctor should check to make sure your loneliness or depression is not due to an underlying medical problem.
You should have a full physical exam and blood work completed to rule this out.
It is important to know that these issues are not caused by something such as a thyroid or low iron issue.
Your medical doctor will want to know about your family history and other factors that may be playing into the problem as well.
This will allow them to make a thorough assessment to set up your treatment plan.
Once all this information is gathered and medical issues ruled out, then the next steps begin.
There are two options a doctor may suggest at this point that applies to depression rather than loneliness.
First, your medical doctor may try to work on the depression with antidepressant medication.
This is working under the assumption that your brain chemistry needs to be addressed.
The other option is to refer the patient to a mental health professional who specializes in treating depression.
Seeing a specialist means that not only can medication be prescribed but therapy can happen at the same time.
It takes weeks to sort out medications and dosages so having therapy along with it is helpful.
While medication is not used for loneliness, a mental health professional may also be beneficial when treating with loneliness.
While medication is not beneficial unless it is treating a related issue, therapy can be.
Talk therapy and CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) are both types of mental health support that can address both depression and loneliness.
CBT can often be helpful as it teaches the person to recognize thinking that is distorted and unhealthy.
It focuses on changing behaviors and ways that a person’s mind responds to situations.
These types of therapy can be used on their own without the support of medications if the psychiatrist, psychologist or counsellor are working on treating loneliness or mild depression.
However, if the loneliness is coupled with anxiety or there is moderate to severe depression then steps will probably include therapy and medication as a combined treatment plan.
When approaching a doctor for psychological/medical help, you may want to include other people in the discussion.
Sometimes loneliness or depression can come from a place where we have been damaged by our past and current relationships.
Having sessions with a mental health professional that includes those people who have affected you can be helpful in examining the feelings of loneliness and depression.
Once you have started your regimen of treatment to address depression or loneliness, you will then have to assess with your professional caregiver how long you will need to be treated.
It can be a quick few weeks or much longer if your case is more severe.
Your care provider may also suggest that you get some support from outside groups as well as work on some self-care options that run in conjunction with your other treatment.
There are some things that can be done to reduce the symptoms of depression and loneliness.
One significant self-support can be found in exercise.
Studies have shown that exercise can help alleviate some of the symptoms of depression and indirectly loneliness.
Exercising on a regular basis often raises serotonin levels in the brain which offsets negative feelings and can counteract the feelings of depression and loneliness.
It is shown to increase positive feelings as well as improve mood overall.
It can also help raise self-esteem as well as build social networks if you have joined a team or gym to get your exercise.
You are broadening your support system through groups while doing self-care as well.
Along with exercise, your caregiver will want to you make sure you are getting enough sleep but not too much sleep.
Again, the proper amount of shut-eye will help settle your mood into a positive pattern and improve overall mood.
While you have to be mindful that too much or too little sleep is a symptom of depression, working on the right amount can be a huge mental health benefit.
Further to sleep and exercise, eating properly is another good self-care tool.
A healthy diet means you are eating well and getting all the vitamins and minerals to support good mental health.
Avoiding depressants like alcohol will be a big benefit too.
While exercise, sleep and diet are fairly basic, they are self-care tactics that can help you move forward you in your work to heal your depression and loneliness.
They can also help find you groups of people who can be your support system and build up your self-confidence.
Depression and loneliness are real issues that are debilitating for many people.
They can be so severe that everyday life feels hopeless and it becomes an overwhelming feeling to even make it out the door to work, socialize or carry out everyday tasks.
The struggle to deal with these two issues without professional help can create further anxiety and mental health problems making the issues cyclical and difficult to get out of.
If you are aware of the symptoms of depression and loneliness as well as who may be predisposed to either, then you can decide if mental health assistance is needed.
If you or someone you know are struggling with either depression or loneliness, then there are ways you can get or offer some assistance.
You should be looking for proper psychological/ medical support rather than just battling your way through the days of difficulty on your own.
If you have symptoms of depression and or loneliness, then you need to take the initial step of visiting your family doctor to make sure there are no medical issues causing these symptoms.
Once you have been cleared medically, your doctor can then offer some treatment or make referrals to a mental health expert such as a psychiatrist, psychologist or counsellor.
These steps through the health care system will make sure both your physical and mental health needs are addressed.
