Overcome Depression Blog

Many people do not realize just how many different types of depression there are, and atypical depression is one of the most common. Atypical depression is considered as being a type of major depression which tends to cause greater functional impairment than other forms of depression, and it also usually tends to occur earlier in life than most other forms of depression.

Symptoms like a weight gain of ten or more pounds and the need to sleep more than ten hours per day could indicate a lot more than just a lazy spell! It’s likely that you are dealing with Atypical Depression. Learn what you need to know to help you be certain.

Patients who suffer from atypical depression are more likely to suffer from other mental illnesses as well, including social phobia, avoidant personality disorder, or body dysmorphic disorder, for instance. Although it is not yet entirely clear as to how atypical depression responds to treatment as compared with melancholic depression, some studies have suggested that an older class of drugs, MAOIs, may be more effective at treating atypical depression than the more modern types.

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Symptoms

Recognizing the signs and symptoms of the disease is the first step to determining whether or not you are a sufferer, and the most commonly experienced symptoms include: increased appetite with weight gain of 10 lbs or more when depressed, hypersomnia (excessive sleep) of 10 hours a day or more or 2 hours more sleep than the usual amount of sleep when not depressed, heavy or leaden feeling in arms and legs, and longstanding pattern of interpersonal rejection sensitivity which is not limited to episodes of depression.

Treatment

If you find out that you do in fact suffer from this type of depression, than there are basically a few different forms of treatment in particular that you can opt to go with. Once your doctor has professionally diagnosed you with this ailment, you will have the option of taking antidepressants to control the symptoms, and it is important to note that while antidepressants are often the first line of treatment, there are many safe alternatives to most types of depression.

You should, if interested, discuss natural alternatives with doctor, such as Deprex, for instance, before using prescription medications, most of which have potentially serious and even life-threatening side effects.

One of the most important things of all to remember is that even if you are diagnosed with this type of depression that there is help out there for you, and that with the proper treatment and a bit of time, you will be able to feel better, even thought it may not seem that way at the time. Keep your head up and try to stay as positive as possible, and know that there are choices out there that are going to be able to help you.

Tags: Atypical Depression