Introduction
For many people, separation from a partner is a major break in their emotional well-being. Especially after long lasting relationships, separation is a particularly stressful situation. Sadness is a normal reaction to such an event, but where is the line between sadness and depression? When should I start looking for help and where can I get it? All these questions are answered in the following article.
How can I recognize that I suffer from depression after a separation and not just from “normal” separation pain?
Often the transition between pain of separation and depression is fluid, making it difficult to diagnose depression. The time component is particularly important in this context. Clinical depression is only referred to as clinical depression if the emotional distress lasts for at least two weeks.
The classic pain of separation has usually largely subsided after this period. There are diagnostic criteria for depression which have been established by the WHO (World Health Organisation). A distinction is made between main and secondary criteria, which are taken into account for the diagnosis.
The main criteria include Depressed mood Loss of drive Loss of interest and joylessness If at least two of these main symptoms persist for at least two weeks, this is considered an indication of a depressive episode. In addition, the WHO considers the following seven secondary criteria: reduced ability to concentrate and attention disorders reduced self-esteem feelings of inferiority and guilt feelings of helplessness and hopelessness suicidal thoughts or actions sleep disorders reduced appetite If at least two of the secondary symptoms exist in addition to two main symptoms for at least two weeks, this is referred to as mild depression. If three main symptoms and at least five secondary criteria are present, a diagnosis of severe depression can be made, which in principle is an indication for inpatient treatment.
It is often difficult for the person affected to differentiate whether the symptoms are true or not. This is due to the fact that people with a depressive disposition have a disturbed self-perception and therefore cannot make a reliable self-diagnosis. For this reason, it is particularly important to consult your family doctor or outpatient psychiatrist if there is a suspicion of a depressive illness. – Depressed mood
- Avolition
- Loss of interest and joylessness
- Reduced ability to concentrate and attention disorders
- Lowered self-esteem
- Feelings of inferiority and guilt
- Helplessness and hopelessness
- Suicidal thoughts or actions
- Insomnia
- Reduced appetite
What accompanying symptoms can occur?
In addition to the above-mentioned symptoms, which mainly relate to the psyche, there may be physical symptoms, but these are caused by the depression. Depressive patients can react with both increased and decreased food intake. This results either in weight gain or weight loss.
In addition, patients often report disturbed sleep. A distinction is made between difficulties in falling asleep and difficulties in sleeping through. People with depression have problems falling asleep and wake up early the next morning, so they rarely feel well rested.
In addition, a depressive mood can lead to irregularities in bowel movements and urination. Both constipation and diarrhoea are possible. Not to be underestimated is also the loss of sexual interest or sexual functioning, which is felt to be particularly distressing, especially by men.
Loss of drive is one of the main symptoms of depression and therefore occurs frequently in affected patients. In general, listlessness is the inability to motivate oneself to perform various activities. In severely depressed persons, this goes so far that they are sometimes no longer able to cope in their everyday life and are, for example, no longer able to provide themselves with sufficient food or to follow personal hygiene.
Fatigue in depressed patients often results from disturbed sleep. On the one hand, the patients find it difficult to fall asleep and on the other hand they suffer from early waking. This means waking up more than two hours early before the usual time of getting up.
Both of these factors lead to patients getting too little sleep and therefore not feeling sufficiently rested in the morning. As a result, patients quickly get into a vicious circle, as they now spend a lot of time in bed during the day to make up for the lack of sleep at night. This leads both to a disturbed day-night rhythm, which in turn worsens night sleep, and to increasing social isolation.
Depressed mood and sadness are core symptoms of depression. Those affected find it difficult to grasp positive thoughts and thus lose themselves in their sadness. Often the patient’s thoughts only revolve around negative emotions and they tend to brood. The bad mood is perceived by the patients as very unpleasant and thus represents the largest part of the suffering.
