Persistent Depressive Disorder is a mental health mood disorder, it is a form of Depression. It was commonly known as Dysthymia. Persistent Depressive Disorder can affect both adults and children. Depression that lasts for over two years in adults or over one year in children is Persistent Depressive Disorder.
Symptoms of Persistent Depressive Disorder:
The more common symptoms of Persistent Depressive Disorder are depressed mood, insomnia or hypersomnia (unable to sleep or sleeping too much), Loss of interest in activities that once was interested, Fatigue or lack of energy, feeling of worthlessness, unable to concentrate on small tasks, difficulty in doing regular things like brushing and grooming, weight loss or weight gain, difficulty in making small decisions.
Causes of Persistent Depressive Disorder:
Persistent Depressive Disorder can have many causes. It is not easy to pinpoint the exact cause. It could be in the family, if one person in the family has Persistent Depressive Disorder it could be the cause for another person having it. There are also the environmental factors that contribute to Persistent Depressive Disorder. The different factors could be stressful events in life like loss of a loved one, diagnosed with a serious illness, loss of job or livelihood. The cause could be a combination of different factors.
Diagnosis of Persistent Depressive Disorder:
Firstly the primary health care provider or the general physician will check the symptoms and see if he can find causes. They would check for physical causes of the symptoms and lab tests. Next would go through a detailed questionnaire to find out the psychological causes. It is after these tests that you would be referred to a mental health professional.
Treatment of Persistent Depressive Disorder:
The treatments for Persistent Depressive Disorder depends on the severity of the problem. It could be medications prescribed by psychiatrists or psychotherapy administered by mental health professionals. This will depend on how the person is respond to the treatment. The dosage of the medication could either be increased, decreased or replaced with other medications, similarly with psychotherapy.
Here to help
If you think you are being bothered by any of these or any other mental health issues, Ananth Jeevan is here to help. Here’s how you can avail our services:
- If you want to talk to someone, there is a helpline you can contact at +918645687456. We are here to listen.
- You can check your mental health status via our AJ App by downloading it from Android Playstore
- If you want to chat anonymously, you can check out the feature in our app.
- If you want Counselling, you can ask for appointments from our WhatsApp number +917661951444
