Mood & Depression
Depression
Also known as Major Depressive Disorder
More than low mood: a flattening of energy, interest and pleasure that lasts weeks or months and changes how you think about yourself and the future.
What it can feel like
- Low mood most of the day, nearly every day
- Loss of interest in things that used to matter
- Fatigue, or feeling slowed down or restless
- Sleep and appetite changes in either direction
- Harsh self-criticism, guilt, difficulty concentrating
Not everyone has every symptom, and you do not need a label to deserve support.
Things that help
Act first, motivation later
Depression waits for the mood to change before acting; the mood changes after acting. Choose one small, specific, doable thing, and lower the bar until it is doable.
Keep a light anchor to the day
A fixed wake time, daylight, food and one contact with another person. Structure protects you while treatment takes effect.
Talk to yourself as you would to a friend
Notice the harshest sentence in your head and rewrite it more fairly. Thought records help, and a therapist can teach them quickly.
Want to actually do these? Save them to your practices and tick them off as you go.
Add to my practicesWhen to reach for more support
Speak to a GP if low mood lasts more than two weeks or affects daily life. Talking therapy, exercise-based approaches and medication all have evidence.
Often looked at together
Bipolar I Disorder
Episodes of mania, where mood and energy escalate far beyond normal for a week or more, usually alternating with periods of depression.
Bipolar II Disorder
Repeated depressive episodes with milder episodes of elevated mood (hypomania) that feel productive rather than out of control. Often mistaken for depression for years.
Cyclothymia
Two years or more of shifting between mild highs and mild lows that never quite reach full episodes, but still unsettle stability.