Posted by Questionmark on April 18, 2003, at 1:47:50
In reply to Melancholic depression, posted by Questionmark on April 18, 2003, at 0:56:08
A doctor's description of melancholic
depression that i found online (sorry i can't remember the source):
"In melancholic depression, patients seem almost
hyper-aroused; they feel very anxious. The anxiety is
most often about themselves. They often feel they're
not good enough, that they really are deficient human
beings, that it would be hard for someone to love a
person like them and that this is the way they will be
for the rest of their lives — so they have no hope for
the future.
When this is very severe, I don't think that a person
could feel more pain or any worse. The melancholic
depression is also associated with physiological
changes. Folks have insomnia and most often
early-morning awakening; their appetite is decreased;
they generally feel worse in the morning and the
depression improves slightly as the day goes on.
They lose interest in sexual activity; they lose
concentration; and, to a certain extent, all they
think about is how bad they feel. No matter how many
thoughts they have about making it better, they often
really can't arrive at any conclusion at all. They
think it is going to last forever."Except for the early-morning awakening and one other thing, i think that describes me extremely well. Anyone else feel this?
Here's another description i liked, from holistic-online.com:
"Sufferers of depression with melancholic features withdraw into a dense cocoon of misery that nothing can penetrate. Nothing seem to make them happy. Even the most joyful events in life seem empty and have no meaning to them.
The victims of this depression are frigid and have lost the capacity to experience pleasure.
Other symptoms include the disappearance of appetite, severe weight loss, and a terrible problem getting any sleep."
"Here is a typical scenario:
You wake up at 3 A.M. feeling absolutely rotten, desperate, and agitated. You turn on TV but can't watch, pick up a book but can't read, try soothing music but feel irritated by it. You return to bed-but toss, turn, and fret in the endless hours before dawn. As the sun rises, you begin pacing around the apartment but feel no relief or comfort and finally go back to bed. You feel worthless wasting time in bed but you are too washed out to get up.
Your mind is filled with self-criticism, ruminations, catastrophization, and worries.
As the day progresses, you feel a bit better. By late afternoon you are relieved enough to eat a light meal and get dressed. The evening is not fun, but it is not an agitated torture. By 3 A.M. the next morning, however, you are back in the lowest circle of hell."
poster:Questionmark
thread:220289
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030417/msgs/220298.html