Depression
Depression is a common but serious mental health disorder that can affect how you feel, think and handle your daily routine.
Overview and Symptoms
Symptoms of depression may include:
- Loss of interest in activities
- Persistently depressed moods
- Difficulty concentrating, remembering or making decisions
- Loss of appetite and/or changes to your weight
Your doctor may determine a diagnosis of depression based on:
- A physical exam and questions about your health. In some cases, depression may be linked to an underlying physical health problem.
- You may be asked to do lab tests to make sure your thyroid is functioning properly and to rule out other potential diagnoses.
Treatment
You and your doctor may choose to treat your depression with medication, lifestyle changes and/or working with a mental health professional. You may also have the option of Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT). During ECT, a psychiatrist sends a small amount of electrical current to the patient's brain. The current triggers a seizure that affects the entire brain, including the areas that control mood, thinking, sleep and appetite. Repeated treatments reconfigure the brain's chemical messages and offer patients new hope for recovery from life-threatening depression and other mental illnesses. ECT can be offered on an inpatient or outpatient basis, depending on the patient's needs.
Psychiatry
Our highly specialized team is committed to caring for those suffering from psychiatric illnesses. We strive to create new knowledge about the causes of these illnesses and to create new and more effective treatments for them through breakthrough research.