An increase of blue and green colors, along with decreased white and yellow areas, shows decreased brain activity due to depression.
Depression causes the hippocampus to raise its cortisol levels, impeding the development of neurons in your brain. The shrinkage of brain circuits is closely connected to the reduction of the affected part's function. While other cerebral areas shrink due to high levels of cortisol, the amygdala enlarges.
The main subcortical limbic brain regions implicated in depression are the amygdala, hippocampus, and the dorsomedial thalamus. Both structural and functional abnormalities in these areas have been found in depression.
People with depression have a distinguishing feature in their brains: They have fewer astrocytes, a type of star-shaped brain cell, compared with the brains of people without mental health disorders, according to a new study.
To some extent, brain imaging can identify different types of depression according to the part of the brain affected. With the information compiled by numerous brain scans, researchers can find common themes in brain structure, brain function and mental health symptoms among people with depression.
Loss of volume of the part of the Brain
Results of several MRI scan studies have demonstrated people with depression had a hippocampus volume that was up to 10% lower than people without depression.
Diagnosing Depression
Because several medical conditions mimic depression symptoms, neurologists can help confirm a diagnosis of depression. Symptoms that look similar to depression are common among adults who have substance abuse issues, medication side effects, medical problems, or other mental health conditions.
The majority of changes and damage to the brain caused by untreated depression are not believed to be permanent, but more research is still needed. When depression is effectively treated, most people commonly experience an improvement in symptoms, and their brains return to typical function and structure.
People with clinical depression often have increased levels of monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A), an enzyme that breaks down key neurotransmitters, resulting in very low levels of serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine.
Untreated depression increases the chance of risky behaviors such as drug or alcohol addiction. It also can ruin relationships, cause problems at work, and make it difficult to overcome serious illnesses. Clinical depression, also known as major depression, is an illness that involves the body, mood, and thoughts.
Antidepressants can cause changes in neurotransmitter levels and brain function; however, these changes are typically reversible once the medication is stopped.
There's no single cause of depression. It can occur for a variety of reasons and it has many different triggers. For some people, an upsetting or stressful life event, such as bereavement, divorce, illness, redundancy and job or money worries, can be the cause. Different causes can often combine to trigger depression.
Research suggests that depression doesn't spring from simply having too much or too little of certain brain chemicals. Rather, there are many possible causes of depression, including faulty mood regulation by the brain, genetic vulnerability, and stressful life events.
There is no cure for depression, but many different treatments are available to manage the symptoms. The symptoms of depression vary among individuals. A treatment plan that includes medical interventions, support, and lifestyle changes can enable a person to live a normal and full life with the condition.
According to the Mayo Clinic, patients with untreated long-term depression are more prone to sleep disruptions, heart disease, weight gain or loss, weakened immune systems, and physical pain. Depression can result in an unhealthy cycle.
A PET scan can compare brain activity during periods of depression (left) with normal brain activity (right). An increase of blue and green colors, along with decreased white and yellow areas, shows decreased brain activity due to depression.
Clinical depression is a chronic condition, but it usually occurs in episodes, which can last several weeks or months. You'll likely have more than one episode in your lifetime. This is different from persistent depressive disorder, which is mild or moderate depression that lasts for at least two years.
“This means that the brain structure of patients with serious clinical depression is not as fixed as we thought, and we can improve brain structure within a short time frame, around 6 weeks,” said Eric Ruhe, from Rabdoud Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands .
Rewiring your brain with the help of hypnotherapy
Rewiring your brain is something you do unintentionally every day. When you add positive intent to your actions, you empower yourself to rewire your brain in a way that can reduce your symptoms of depression.
Psychiatrists typically diagnose using psychological tests and one-on-one evaluations, and they also run lab tests to rule out any physical cause for symptoms. Treatment can include psychotherapy, medications, or a combination of both, and medication will be fine-tuned according to observations and results.
To be diagnosed with depression, an individual must have five depression symptoms every day, nearly all day, for at least 2 weeks. One of the symptoms must be a depressed mood or a loss of interest or pleasure in almost all activities.
The main way a GP will tell if you have depression is by asking you questions about your general health and how the way you're feeling is affecting you mentally and physically. Try to be as open and honest as you can be with your answers.