Depression and Low mood
What is depression?
Most of us feel fed up from time to time, but these feelings are usually short lived and manageable within our day to day lives. However in depression, these feelings do not lift and they can carry on for weeks or months. The feelings can become overwhelming and can interfere with a person's functioning and enjoyment of life.
Depression can feel like a lonely and isolating experience and can impact on a person's ability to work, socialise and develop relationships.
Causes of depression
Sometimes depression can be a reaction to a life event, such as the end of a relationship, bereavement or a job loss. Depression is not always caused by a single event and can sometimes appear to have come from nowhere.
Student life can be a fun and exciting experience. However, many aspects of going to university, such as living away from home, achieving good academic grades, financial responsibility and making friends can be a stressful experience and can sometimes result in a person feeling low in mood or depressed.
Some symptoms of depression
Can't cope with things that you used to
Tiredness
Loss of appetite and weight (some people may over eat and gain weight)
Feel unhappy most of the time (but especially in the morning)
Feel useless, inadequate and hopeless about the future
Erratic sleep
Difficulty in making decisions
Physical pains inc headaches
Erratic thinking and irritability
How to help yourself?
Try not to isolate yourself - Spend time with people and talk about how you are feeling. Simply talking about how you are feeling can be helpful and isolating yourself can increase your feelings of depression.
Eat Well – You may not feel like eating, but try to eat regularly. Running short on vitamins and rapid weight loss can have a huge impact on your mood.
Avoid alcohol and cannabis – Alcohol is a depressant and can make depression worse. It may make you feel better for a short while, but it won't last. Drinking can be bad for your physical health and can prevent you from dealing with important issues and from seeking help.
There is evidence to suggest that regular cannabis use, particularly in young people can bring on depression and other mental health problems.
Sleep – Try and maintain a healthy sleep regime, using relaxation and low stimulus activity before going to bed. (see section on sleep for further information)
Seeking Help
Most people with depression are treated by their GP. You can also seek help within the University by contacting the Counselling and Mental Health Support Team.
Useful Links
Links to organisations and contacts external to the University are provided for your convenience, but the University takes no responsibility for the content of the sites or for the outcomes of any contacts made through following these links.
www.help guide.org
www.samaritans.org
FightingDepression.co.uk
www.nhs.uk
