Depression Characteristics Flashcards
Behavioural
Activity levels, Disruption of sleeping and eating behaviours, and Aggression and self-harm
Activity Levels
Reduced levels of energy means they tend to withdraw from work, education, and social life. They may not get out of bed. But it can also have the reverse effect where they struggle to relax and cannot sit still.
Disruption of sleeping and eating behaviours
Sleep is either reduced or increased the same with eating which leads to a weight change.
Aggression and self-harm
They may become aggressive which they may take out on themselves through self-harm or even suicide attempts.
Emotional
Low mood, Anger, and Low self-esteem
Low mood
Involves feelings of sadness and low mood. Clinical depression is more than just sad but empty and worthless.
Anger
They often feel extreme anger which can be taken out on others or themselves.
Low self-esteem
They report low self-esteem which can be so extreme it leads to self-loathing.
Cognitive
Poor concentration, Attending and dwelling on the negative, and Absolutist thinking
Poor concentration
Depression is associated with poor concentration which means they may find it hard to persevere with tasks and make decisions.
Attending and dwelling on the negative
When experiencing a depressive episode they tend to selectively attend to negative things and ignore positive. Bias towards recalling more negative than happy events.
Absolutist thinking
Sometimes called black and white thinking where everything is either all good or all bad.
