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What Is Depression Like?

What Is Depression Like?

Depression is not something you should take lightly. It is a serious mental health condition that can greatly affect every part of your life. It leads to intense feelings of sadness and hopelessness, and it makes you lose interest in things you enjoy. You may find yourself isolated from your friends and family due to your condition.

Fortunately, despite the hopelessness, this condition brings on, you can indeed find relief from your symptoms with the right treatment options or lifestyle changes.

So What Is Depression Like?

Depression is different between people, but generally, most cases are going to have some symptoms in common. Symptoms can include:

  • Sadness, hopelessness, or emotional emptiness
  • Feeling guilty or worthless
  • Irritability or angry outbursts
  • Lack of interest in hobbies or things you used to enjoy
  • Changes in sleep patterns, like sleeping too little or sleeping too much
  • Fatigue and loss of energy
  • Tearfulness
  • Anxiety or restlessness
  • Trouble concentrating or making decisions
  • Difficulty remembering things
  • Changes in appetite, either eating too much or too little
  • Subsequent weight loss or weight gain
  • Thoughts of suicide or self-harm
  • Unexplained aches and pains
  • Digestive distress

Symptoms may also vary depending on your age. Examples of depression symptoms in children include:

  • Sadness
  • Irritability
  • Clinginess
  • Anxiety
  • Unexplained aches and pains
  • Being underweight
  • Not wanting to go to school

Depression in teenagers may include symptoms like:

  • Sadness
  • Irritability
  • Anger
  • Poor performance or attendance in school
  • Sensitivity
  • Feeling worthless
  • Substance abuse
  • Eating or sleeping too much
  • Thoughts of suicide or self-harm
  • Avoiding social interaction

Depression also has some symptoms unique to older adults who develop this condition.

  • Trouble remembering things
  • Personality changes
  • Fatigue
  • Loss of appetite
  • Problems sleeping
  • Lack of interest
  • Social isolation
  • Suicidal thoughts or actions

What Causes Depression?

Depression can be brought on by several things, rather than having one single identifiable cause. These factors can include:

  • Biological differences
  • Brain chemistry
  • Hormones
  • Inherited genetics and traits

Risk factors for the development of depression include the following:

  • Personality traits like low-esteem or high dependence on others
  • Exposure to traumatic or stressful events like abuse or the loss of a loved one
  • Family history of depression or other mental health disorders
  • Personal history of other mental health conditions
  • Substance abuse
  • Serious or chronic health conditions

How Do You Treat Depression?

Fortunately, there are lots of ways to treat the symptoms of a condition like depression. Old treatments like antidepressants and therapy are available, as well as new options like ketamine infusion which may signal an exciting new era in depression treatment.

Ketamine Infusions

Though it began as a powerful anesthetic and rapid pain reliever, ketamine is now being touted as one of the biggest breakthroughs in depression treatment in decades.

Medications

Certain medications like SSRIs, SNRIs, or atypical antidepressants may help treat depression, although they do occasionally come with side effects and will not work for everyone.

Therapy

Therapy sessions are all about finding healthy ways to understand your symptoms and learn to cope with them.

Contact us today to find out if one of our innovative new treatment options are right for you.

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James T. Leathem, DO

Dr. James Leathem is a board-certified anesthesiologist and a member of the American Society of Anesthesiologists. He was born and raised in Connecticut and graduated from Florida Southern College with a bachelor of science in marketing management with minors in sociology and communications. He obtained his medical degree from Midwestern University’s Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed his residency in anesthesiology at Michigan State University and its affiliated McLaren Greater Lansing Hospital.

In 2015, after residency, Dr. Leathem returned to Arizona to practice anesthesiology. He joined Red Mountain Anesthesiologists and worked primarily at Banner Baywood Medical Center in Mesa, performing 100% of his own cases. He was made partner in the group after demonstrating 3 years of anesthesia excellence and administering over 4,000 anesthetics. In 2019, a corporate change occurred and an opportunity presented itself in which he was able to transition out of the hospital to surgery center and clinic-based anesthesia.

Dr. Leathem realizes that the only constant in life is change. In 2020, amidst the global pandemic, his career took a different direction. This change led him to collaborate with Dr. Wong and Dr. Sharma and they founded Advanced Wellness and Pain (AWAP). Their mission is to provide a variety of state-of-the-art procedural services that improve patients’ quality of life and overall physical and mental well-being.

Dr. Leathem believes that we are all a work in progress and that each day, one should strive to make positive changes in their life. He is here to help empower each patient on their journey to be their best self and live their best life. When you are being cared for by Dr. Leathem, you can be assured that he will give you his undivided attention and time.

Gregory Wong, MD

Dr. Wong is a Board-Certified Anesthesiologist and a member of both the American Society of Anesthesiology and the Arizona Society of Anesthesiology. He did his undergraduate training at the University of California at Davis, Davis, California; doctorate training at The University of Health Sciences of the Chicago Medical School, North Chicago, IL; and his post-doctoral training at the Integrated Program at the University of Arizona, Phoenix, AZ. He has spent his whole 24-year career practicing in Arizona.

Dr. Wong grew up in the Bay Area of California. He is married and is raising three daughters. At the early age of 12 years old, he knew he wanted to become a physician. His love of the human spirit, intrigue of human physiology, and compassion for human suffering led him to the path of anesthesiology and pain medicine.

Today, Dr. Wong realizes patients need a holistic biophysical-mental-spiritual care. This philosophy has brought him to the studies of regenerative medicine and infusion therapies. He has firsthandily witnessed the overwhelming success of these therapies for treating chronic pain and depression and the return of patients of “life-functionality.”

“There has never been a time more important than now to advocate for our patients in these difficult times. We owe it to our patients to offer these state-of-the-art treatment modalities that weren’t available before.”

Deepak Sharma, MD, MBA

Dr. Sharma is a Board Certified Anesthesiologist and a member of the American Society of Anesthesiologists. He completed three degrees at Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA: a Bachelor in Finance, a Master in Business Administration, and a Doctor of Medicine. He went on to complete residency at the Mount Sinai Morningside-West Hospital System in New York, NY and post-graduate fellowship at Stanford Medical Center in Palo Alto, CA.

Dr. Sharma is committed to treating his patients as a whole with a comprehensive biophysical-mental-spiritual approach. He is a lifelong learner and is constantly researching cutting-edge therapies backed by scientific studies. He has taken a particular interest in regenerative and infusion therapies after witnessing firsthand their significant benefits on those suffering from chronic pain and depression. In his free time, Dr. Sharma enjoys spending time with his family and friends, hiking, traveling, reading, and meditation.

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