Symptoms of depression in women after forty

In recent years, depressive disorders have become the scourge of modern civilized society, having the character of a global “mental epidemic” in highly developed countries. In every tenth adult, an irrational disease beyond the control of the individual manifests itself with a variety of somatic and psychological symptoms and, without adequate treatment, tends to worsen painful symptoms that have a huge impact on a person’s life.

Although representatives of both sexes are susceptible to melancholic states, representatives of the fair half of humanity suffer from depression much more often than men, and they have purely “female” forms of the disorder. The authenticity of this “inequality” has been confirmed through numerous epidemiological studies and comparative analysis of clinically recorded cases. Depression in women of various age categories is observed 2 times more often than in a similar group of men, therefore modern medicine has classified female gender as a factor predisposing to the formation of the disease. This fact is explained by gender differences between the sexes - the distinctive features of the psyche, anatomical structure, structure and properties of the endocrine and nervous systems.

Causes of depression in women

In addition to numerous factors that potentiate the development of depression, representatives of the fair half of humanity have their own “feminine” characteristics that affect the mental sphere.

Physiological features

The development of depression is directly related to various changes in hormonal status that inevitably occur in the body of every woman during the reproductive (childbearing) period. The entire life of representatives of the fairer sex is a series of alternating, cyclical processes, at each stage of which peculiar hormonal changes occur.

In the psychosexual and physical development of women, they are distinguished: puberty (puberty) with menarche, the period of puberty, including the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, childbirth, the menopausal phase, the involutionary period (postmenopause). In each of these phases, significant physiological changes occur in the functioning of all systems of the female body. Increased stress during critical periods has a direct impact on the emotional sphere and increases the risk of developing mental pathologies.

Psychological characteristics

Numerous scientific works provide objective, reliable data on small differences in some indicators of mental activity of men and women. Gender psychology provides convincing evidence about the patterns of individual behavior in society, which is determined by biological sex.

Throughout human history, representatives of the fair sex have been endowed with special character traits. It is generally accepted that ladies are more emotional, impressionable, suspicious, delicate, vulnerable and less logical, rational, and consistent than gentlemen. Also, young ladies are less hot-tempered and aggressive, are not endowed with the skills of “direct release” of accumulated negative emotions and do not know how to transform their grievances into more useful energy. Often, negative experiences completely take over a woman’s consciousness for many years. This fixation on the negative provokes the formation of depressive disorders.

Social Features

Functions in society, voluntarily and forcibly assigned to the female sex, force women to be hyper-responsible, pedantic, obligatory, conscientious, and active individuals. Excessive, long-term physical and psycho-emotional stress depletes the protective functions of a woman’s body, primarily affecting the functioning of the brain and nervous system.

Women experience any life events much longer and more difficult. Often, even a stress factor of insignificant intensity is perceived by them as a disaster on a universal scale. Women are much more likely to have the idea of ​​self-accusation and self-deprecation, they are more prone to rummaging through and analyzing their past, they are more self-critical and demanding of their own person.

The impetus for the development of depression in pregnant women can be the negative interaction of social circumstances with the characteristics of the emotional-volitional sphere: inadequate self-esteem, incorrect motivation. Thus, significant stressors for expectant mothers are:

• Problems in relationships with the future father, misunderstanding of close relatives;
• Moral insults, psychological or physical injury;
• Excessive care, excessive attention to the pregnant woman;
• A clear attitude towards problematic, painful childbirth;
• Pathological fear of pain, panic fear of physiological changes;
• Material and housing difficulties;
• Fear of responsibility and rejection of oneself in a new role - the role of a mother;
• Unwanted, unplanned pregnancy, absence of a partner or his unreliability;
• Somatic complications during pregnancy.

Doctors' advice

Despite many recommendations regarding treating depression on your own, you cannot do without professional help. The sooner a woman contacts a qualified doctor, the higher the chances of quickly and permanently eliminating the problem. Doctors' advice is based not only on providing psychological assistance; in some cases, the use of medications is necessary.

We recommend reading: Depression during pregnancy - reasons, what to do

Treatment of mental disorders is carried out through the use of hypnosis, art therapy, social and classical psychotherapy. Medications are used for moderate and severe forms of the disease, in the presence of severe symptoms that significantly worsen the patient’s quality of life.

Drug treatment consists of:

1. Antidepressant drugs affect the level of neurotransmitters, including serotonin and dopamine. For depression, they improve mood, eliminate anxious, negative thoughts, improve appetite and sleep. Often used are Prozac and Lerivon.

1. Neuroleptics are psychotropic drugs that eliminate hallucinogenic and delusional states, improve mental function, reduce aggression and excessive excitability. Used in the presence of psychosis and severe depression. The most popular are Solian and Rispolept.

1. Tranquilizers - reduce the active functioning of the nervous system, have an anticonvulsant and sedative effect. This group includes drugs such as Trioxazine and Phenazepam.

For greater effectiveness, complexes of vitamins and minerals are prescribed, including vitamin A, E, D, ascorbic acid, B9.

Along with the use of drug therapy, it is recommended to pay attention to the implementation of medical recommendations that can significantly improve the situation:

• self-analysis – allows you to understand the main reason for the development of depression; a woman needs to think about at what point in her life changes in mood and behavior began to occur, what memories lead to apathy; Having thought about the causes of the disease, you should try to answer the questions - why this happened, free yourself from the destructive feeling that prevents you from enjoying life;

• exclusion of unpleasant people and moments from life - it is recommended to think about your surroundings, what kind of people are around at one time or another in life; if a person does not bring positivity, but only takes away vital energy and strength, it is better to limit communication with him or completely exclude him from life; also with empty conversations on the phone, watching TV shows and everything that does not bring benefit and joy;

• learn to let go and forgive old grievances - the feeling of resentment brings a lot of negative thoughts and sadness, and constant memories of the situation in which the offense was caused and about the offender himself have a destructive effect on the psyche; to get rid of feelings such as offense, it is necessary to analyze what happened, soberly assessing the situation, whether there was an offense or perhaps everything was perceived biasedly; negative thoughts of another person should not influence others, one should learn not to take them seriously;

• meditation - balances thoughts, brings calm, improves mood, strengthens faith in oneself, restores the joy of life; first, you will have to take several lessons from professionals who practice yoga, because in the meditation technique it is very important to maintain proper breathing, smooth movements and much more; in the future, classes can be carried out at home;

• get a pet - most animals need human care, affection and attention, but in turn they are quite sensitive to a person’s mood, and most importantly, they contribute to its improvement, and besides, caring for an animal can distract from current problems.

Symptoms of depression in women

In clinical psychiatry, it is customary to follow the recommendations of ICD-10 (F30-39), which describe blocks of affective disorders associated with changes in emotional status and mood. In addition to diseases characteristic of both sexes, certain “female” affective ailments have been identified: premenstrual dysphoric disorder, depressive syndrome during pregnancy, postnatal depression, disorders of the menopausal period, pathologies during postmenopause.

The duration of such painful conditions can be either short-term or long-term, and depends on the characteristics of the hormonal status and individual character traits of the patient. Thus, PDR syndrome, which affects 7% of the female population, has a cyclical, recurring monthly nature and manifests itself for no more than 2 weeks. Up to 50% of women suffer from postnatal depressive states, protracted disorders that occur in a more severe form. During menopause, about 15% of women are at risk of depression, since in the menopausal phase there are sharp fluctuations in the level of hormones that directly interact with brain neurotransmitters responsible for the emotional sphere.

Symptoms of depression in women can be different not only in their somatic and mental manifestations, but also vary from signs of minimal impact to completely “absorbing” the patient’s consciousness. It is very important to promptly detect warning signs of an emerging disease and seek qualified medical help.

The main psychological symptoms of depressive states that develop as a result of hormonal changes:

• Melancholy mood, depressing sadness, alternating with an excited, euphoric state;
• Unreasonable tearfulness, suspiciousness, resentment, alternated with unbridled joy;
• Ideas of self-condemnation, self-deprecation;
• Feeling of hopelessness and futility of the future;
• Internal tension, irrational anxiety;
• Irritability, aggressiveness, conflict behavior;
• Loss of interest in usual activities;
• Decreased or increased appetite, need for specific nutrition;
• Difficulty concentrating;
• Feeling of lack of energy, fatigue, decreased performance;
• Insomnia or excessive sleepiness.
• Lack of meaning in life, lack of desire to live;
• The emergence of suicidal thoughts.

Autonomic and somatic signs of depression in women are manifested by psychogenic pain syndrome, including:

• feeling of discomfort, tension, aching pain in the mammary glands;
• cephalgia (headaches) of a squeezing, aching, squeezing nature;
• muscle and joint pain;
• tachycardia, discomfort in the heart area;
• frequent “jumps” in blood pressure;
• dyspeptic disorders;
• the appearance of swelling of the face, legs, hands;
• increased sweating;
• feeling of itching on the skin.

Signs of recovery from depression

The surest symptom of getting out of depression is a more optimistic outlook on things, accompanied by increased self-esteem, a desire for activity, and success. If a woman has dreams, it means that depression goes away.

Along with these signs, sleep is normalized, productivity increases, and the number of social contacts increases, as the woman becomes much more pleasant to talk to and more cheerful. Food seems more appetizing and life seems more interesting.

Getting out of depression must be accompanied by comprehensive work on oneself , since the cause of depression lies within the person himself. It cannot be eliminated without bringing it to the surface. But this must be done gradually. To reduce emotional intensity, you can use meditation and other aids.

What is depression really?

Depression is a disease. Those who believe that you can “endure it” and it will pass on its own are wrong. Unfortunately, it doesn't work. As in the treatment of any disease, correct diagnosis is needed here. Experts identify the following main types of depression:

1. Exogenous (or psychogenic).
2. Endogenous.
3. Somatogenic (or symptomatic).

Exogenous depression is caused by reactions to external events: chronic stress, death or serious illness of loved ones, job loss, etc.

If you don’t want to wake up in the morning, take this condition seriously

The causes of endogenous depression are not fully understood. It can also occur for no apparent reason. There are suggestions about a genetic predisposition to it, when pathological genes are inherited. The absence of previous psychological trauma is its distinctive feature.

Somatogenic depression is secondary; it is based on a somatic illness. It is a consequence of the fact that a person could not cope with this situation.

Over time, depression can be protracted and last for years. May be seasonal with exacerbations in autumn and spring. It may be hidden, disguised as other diseases.

Only turning to specialists will help recognize depression and cope with it. Psychotherapists, clinical psychologists, and neurologists work in this direction.

How to overcome depression

Only by understanding the cause can women get rid of depression. If the condition is associated with menopause, treatment should be carried out by both a gynecologist-endocrinologist and a psychotherapist. If depression is caused by any physical illness, first of all it is necessary to treat it by adding psychotherapy. Depression often occurs with cancer, such as breast cancer. And here the help of a specialist is simply necessary.

Among the treatment methods are the following:

• Drug therapy.
• Psychotherapy.
• Physical education classes.

Drug therapy

The arsenal of antidepressants is currently very large. The latest generation of drugs refutes the myth about the harm they allegedly can cause and about addiction to them. Such drugs are prescribed by a doctor.

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There are over-the-counter drugs that help with mild depression: Afobazol, Tenoten. Taken in courses, they can alleviate symptoms.

Vitamins are an essential element in the complex treatment of depression. The leader here is MagneV6 forte. B vitamins must be present in treatment regimens; it is also recommended to take vitamin D.

Preparations based on St. John's wort have a good sedative effect. They are prescribed for anxiety, symptomatic and reactive depression, and sleep disorders. These include the domestic Deprim, Relax from the Swiss company Vivasan.

Before taking medications, be sure to consult a specialist

Normalizing sleep is one of the components of successful treatment of depression. Here, herbal preparations come to the rescue: Novo-Passit, Persen - Forte, as well as Melaxen (Melatonin). Glycine has a good sedative effect. But it’s better to ask your doctor what he prescribed for you.

Psychotherapy

Treatment success is achieved faster if drug treatment is combined with psychotherapeutic techniques.

The following methods are used for depression:

• Hypnosis.
• Cognitive behavioral therapy.
• Psychoanalysis.
• Gestalt therapy.

To recover from severe depression, hypnosis is often used as an effective treatment method.

During cognitive behavioral therapy, a woman, together with a doctor, works through negative attitudes and learns to change them.

During psychoanalysis, a search is made for the causes of depression coming from childhood and those traumatic situations that led to the disease.

Gestalt therapy helps women understand the mechanisms of depression in order to get out of it.

Physical activity

Physical education helps in the fight against depression, since physical activity increases the production of serotonin, dopamine, and, therefore, acts on the brain like antidepressants. During exercise, the level of adrenaline and cortisol, stress hormones, decreases.

Doctors and komy-za30 ru recommend starting with morning exercises, but you need to do it regularly.

Each woman selects a set of exercises based on her condition. In the acute stage, there is simply no strength for active exercises, so you need to gradually increase the load.

Yoga and Chinese qigong gymnastics have proven themselves well in the fight against depression. Doctors also recommend dancing instead of gymnastics, since emotions and aesthetic feelings are involved here.