Do you think depression is mental or physical or chemical? And how do you overcome it?

Answer 1

I think you are missing a big answer: d. environmental
it is a combination of all of the above however, it all starts with physiology, if you have that screwed up then there is NO way you are prepared physically, mentally or emotionally to handle any of the other answers. If you or others think there is a possibility that you may have depression than you need to see a health professional and get a pill and boost your serotonin levels. I look at it like a vitamin. The SSRIs like Zoloft, Prozac, celexa are only $4 at Walmart now and many competitors. That works out to less than 20 cents a day for health. In the 17 century we took limes and rum with us to insure healthy water and to avoid scurvy. To insure our lives we need to do this and insure we have the tools needed to be happy

Answer 2

Depression is a feeling. If a feeling can be thought of as someway having substance then it might be physical or chemical. It is mental because it results from thoughts and reactions to thoughts generated by words or acts of self or others. Is mind in someway a substance? The consensus is no. Because mind is associated with a physical brain (neurons) and chemicals like aspirin physically act on neurons to change feelings in the mind, mind is thought to emerge from the physico-chemical activity of neurons. I wonder how; so do many others?

To overcome it takes action. A medication can help but these require a Dr's. prescription. I have found that you can break an orgy of thinking negatively by willing yourself to think positive pleasant thoughts. This positive thinking seems to overcome the feeling of depression but it is hard to keep thinking positive if depression is deep. It has to be done by will power. It is vital to KNOW you are loved to have a positive self image. This image results in a feeling of happiness which seems to overcome depression.

Answer 3

Depression is disorder of mood and movements of the body .so depressed person move slovly ,constipated sleep most ofthe time but they may have insomnia, There are changes in brain Chemistry (Low Seretonin Adrenalin Etc) It runs in the family your personalty also contibut to develop depresion. Feeling depressed when a bab thin hapen is Not depression but an adjustment reaction with depressed mood, normal subjects recover well from it But Depression the reasl illness mey not have any recogniseble cause, MOST IMPORTANT one TO LOOK FOR WHEN SOMEBODY GET DEPRESSION IS SUICIDAL RISK.Australia got high suicidal rate and high propotion of these has had deprresion, ther were early sings of suicidal dehaviour that we have to look for!!!

Answer 4

Most likely to be chemical and/or mental/psychological.
The usual treatment is therapy and/or medication. In today's world, it is rare to treat depression without some form of pharmacological aid.(medications)
Treatment times vary depending on what type of depression you suffer from. The first thing is to get an accurate diagnosis.

Answer 5

Over the last five years I had begun to have increasingly withdraw into a downward spiral of depression..

But now with the method I can fully focus my energy and thoughts into a decisive line on how to make my life better constantly. And it works like magic! I'm beginning to attract people to me once again and things have just been looking up since then.

Helping you eliminate depression?

Answer 6

there is no real difference betwen mental and physical when it comes to mental things. the mind is affected by the body and the body is affected by the mind. the true question is to determine if it is a hardware problem (brain ) or software (mind)

The brain can be messed up by ADHD or adult ADD or many kinds of problems that are basically physical defects from birth or from gestation or from events after being born, such as falls or head knocks from sports etc. these defects may be compared to wiring problems or perhaps component defects or failures ( a blown fuse or burnt out resistor)
If this is the case you are disabled to a certain extent and not too much can be done except to work around the problem. just as a one legged man must limp or get an artificial leg. a brain defect person must learn to compensate in some way. if you are forgetful, you make lists. etc. If you are depressed, you use cognitive therapy or chemicals or whatever to compensate. knowldege is power. first you must be tested to discover if your depression is a brain problem or an emotional or other problem.
Once you discover the origin, you can decide on the solution.

sometimes there is some defect in the hormones or other chemical generating systems of the body. maybe you cannot manufacture the needed amount of serotonin. maybe you cannot utilize the serotonin. This can be from inadequate nutrition or possibly just a physical defect or failure of some part inside.

again, you must discover the cause or nature of defect and then compensate with actions such as extra sleep or exercise or nutrition or drugs or natural supplements to nutrition or a combination. whatever caused the depression, it manifests as certain chemicals being lacking that naturally should occur. doctors may try to replace these with drugs or with supplements or something to stimulate the natural systems to operate properly. exercise can help but depressed people do not want to do it.
Happiness (the opposite of depression) is actually, by definition a "state of mind" so anytihng that improves this state of mind can alleviate the suffering even if it is not directly related to the actual cause. Hence many depressed people self-medicate with food or alchohol or drugs or cigarettes etc to get some relief.
They seldom think to resort to self help in the mental dept such as controling thoughts or cognitive therapy or positive thinking, talking, acting, but these techniques will work as well as chemicals for many sufferers or may add to the efficacy of other remedies taken in concert with them.
Pure mentally caused depression is actually the easiest to cure as it has a mental cause so it has a mental cure. This type really reacts well to positive thinking types of cognitive therapies.
expose yoursefl to only positive things such as happy TV shows, comedies, avoid news papers and TRV news, avoid negative talk about life and problems and health issues. look for the silver lining. Smell good things like apple pie or incense or flowers. enjoy colorful bright upbeat art in music and paintings etc. dance dance dance. go to the seashore or take a cruise.
Inundate your senses with these things and make a list of everything that is good and read it over and over again, especially during attacks. ( count your blessings)

WARNING: do NOT explain or describe your depressed feeling to your friends or family or yourself. it only makes it more real and makes it grow worse. concentrate on positive things only. be a polly anna.
get to a psychologist to get cognitive therapy if you can or else buy a book on it.
see a psychiatrist if you want drugs. do not expect the psychiatrist or anyone else to actually help you much. you must help your self. the psychiatrist will give you prescriptions for drugs and thats about it.
read up on alternative remedies and medical stuff. there are scads of things for depression. ( St Johns Wort, Sam-E, etc. )Make yourself an expert. try them all til you find what works for you. do not quit. life is good and will get better for you someday and you will be glad.

Answer 7

hmm... i dont think i know much about depression but i think i can answer. depression is prob mental however it is physical in a sense that u can see it phisically so the only phisical conection there is to depression is being able to see it thru someone's behaviour. u can overcome it by seeing a specialist, talking to a professional or someone u feel comfy with, relaxation and doin something you love to feel better in a critical situation.
let me know what u think

Answer 8

It could be both. But in my opinion you shouldn't be looking here for answers if you or a loved one is suffering from depression. You should seek professional help. I hope that didn't sound harsh, because it wasn't meant that way. I too have had my trouble with this, and doctors could help out alot.

Answer 9

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Answer 10

All of the above. Depression affects your whole body. You need to see a Dr. and get some help