Find All About Depression Cycle Break

There are several factors can lead to depression after heart attack. The stress of being in the hospital, the fear of another heart attack, time away from work can all contribute to feeling depressed, helpless, down and despondent.

Do many people suffer depression after heart attack?

Not surprisingly, the answer to this question is yes. Recent studies show that as many as 65% of people who have a heart attack report feeling depressed, down and despondent. A general state of despair. Moreover, women, people who have been depressed before, and people who feel alone and without social or emotional support are at a higher risk for feeling depressed after a heart attack. Two new Canadian studies have shown that More than twice as many women than men tend to fall into chronic depression after suffering a heart attack and are more likely to lead lives of poorer quality following their treatments.

Being depressed can also make it harder for you to recover. However, depression can be treated.

Being told by doctors that you should take up exercise, adopt a new diet, stop smoking, etc. can certainly make you feel helpless, in fact, you will probably have good days and bad days following your release from hospital. However, most people start to feel better as time passes. People that are quickly able to get back to their usual routines normally notice a drop in anxiety faster than those that don’t.

So what exactly is depression?

Depression, be it after a heart attack or not, is a medical illness, like diabetes or high blood pressure and not just somebody going crazy. This is important both for the sufferer and family members to understand. The symptoms of depression may include some or all of the following:

--Feeling sad or crying often
--Losing interest in daily activities that used to be fun
--Changes in appetite and weight
--Sleeping too much or having trouble sleeping
--Feeling agitated, cranky or sluggish
--Loss of energy
--Feeling very guilty or worthless
--Problems concentrating or making decisions
--Thoughts of death or suicide

Can heart disease trigger depression or depression trigger heart disease?

Either of the above may be true, one thing seems clear. The two are often found hand in hand, therefore controlling one may help control the other.

According to The American Academy of Family Physicians research has shown that people who are depressed and have pre-existing cardiovascular disease have a 3.5 times greater risk of dying of a heart attack than patients with heart disease who are not depressed. In a recent study, depression was shown to be associated with an increased risk of developing coronary heart disease in men and women. Depression was shown to increase mortality related to coronary heart disease in men but had no effect on mortality in women.

How can the risk of relapse be avoided?

The risk of relapses, be it of heart disease or depression, can be greatly reduced by living a healthy lifestyle, and your doctor will instruct you on this. However, some important lifestyle modifications are avoiding alcohol, illegal drugs, smoking, start a regular exercise program, eating a balanced diet, manage stress, join a club, meet new people or take courses in things that interest you, get enough rest and sleep.

We all have bad days and the ups and downs of daily living can really wear us out. Sometimes, we notice that we are having more down times than up, and the feelings of sadness or hopelessness can begin to dominate our outlook.

Here are Basic sighs and symptoms of depression:

--Having no energy
--Feeling cranky and irritable
--Feeling sad
--Feelings of hopelessness
--Feeling empty inside
--Crying a lot
--You feel like crying, but you can't
--No joy in your life
--You can't concentrate
--Sleeping too much
--Change in your eating habits
--Thoughts of death or suicide

- Note: if you are in immediate crisis, or seriously considering suicide, you should go to the nearest emergency room or phone for help.

If you have several of these symptoms and feel down for more than two weeks, you might be experiencing depression.

Depression can range from normal, mild “ups and downs” to severe depression that lasts a long time. Women are more than twice as likely to experience depression as men. When we feel lethargic and sad, our partners and children notice. This change in mood can affect our job performance as well.

Some people have good results using natural or homeopathic remedies for treating depressive symptoms. If you think you might have depression, consult with your doctor to see if a natural supplement or depression medication might be suitable for treating your symptoms.

Most physicians recommend therapy along with a supplement or medication. A therapist can help you understand the roots of your depression. Additionally, you can learn some basic strategies for easing your depressive symptoms.

Right at the outset a misconception must be cleared out. In women going through amid life crisis, their approaching menopause is not the cause of all the mood swings and depressions that she undergoes. On the contrary, it is a fluctuation in quantities of estrogen secreted by the hormonal glands that causes such an emotional overhaul. This can be a difficult time for a woman. And this fluctuation of the hormone levels occurs more in women than in men, and therefore women may face twice as many emotional problems as men would. In case one has a family history of such a condition, the levels of depression may also depend on that.

Another misconception that comes with the onset of menopause is that depression is a normal thing during these phases. Yes, it is normal, but it need not necessarily occur. The depression levels can be easily controlled if one accepts the various alterations that are happening within the human body. Menopause or the dropping of the estrogen levels does not directly cause mood swings or depression. On the contrary, it is the inability to cope up with such changes that leads to such a mental condition.

Some of the symptoms to look out during the menopause are:

* anxiety
* irritability
* changes in body temperature
* sleeping problems
* tiredness due to weakening of bones
* mental fatigue
* forgetfulness

However, all of the above are just the resultant manifestations of the actually menopausal onset. Once a woman enters her mid thirties to mid forties the ovaries produced by the womb decrease considerably. Ovulation becomes erratic as a result of which the monthly menstrual cycle also fluctuates from the normal time period.

Many women who undergo severe depression during this time do so because they are unable to understand the changes within their body. The body had been used to a particular pattern for about 25 to 30 years of a woman's life. Now suddenly the disruption of such a routine pattern may result in anxiety. This inevitably leads to a feeling of hopelessness of approaching old age. This is what leads to depression.

Even though a positive mental outlook and taking the changes in one's stride can go a long way in countering such a condition, medical help must be sought in case the problem persists or aggravates. Problems related to the heart and bones are most commonly prevalent during menopause. The prescription of anti depressants by doctors and the undergoing of the hormone replacement therapies are the two most common approaches taken to cure such symptoms.

To get a clearer idea about depression you should read its symptoms clearly as

• The feeling of sadness or emptiness that seems to overwhelm the person.
• Loss of focus.
• Mental and physical fatigue.
• Insomnia and other disturbed-sleep patterns.
• A noticeable change in appetite or loss of weight.
• Feelings of guilt,nervousness and other similar emotions at an intense level.

There are many symptoms of depression depending on type of depression and its origin, age and gender take a great part in this symptoms but in general it include :


• Depressed mood for most of the day
• Persistent sad or "empty" feelings
• Loss of appetite or loss of weight
• Eating more than usual and gaining weight
• Trouble sleeping, insomnia, or oversleeping
• Anxiety
• Feeling tired all the time or finding everything is an effort
• Not caring anymore about work, hobbies, friends, or sexual activity
• Difficulty concentrating or thinking clearly, or indecisiveness
• Feelings of hopelessness or pessimism
• Feelings of worthlessness
• Excessive or inappropriate guilt
• Thoughts of death or suicide, or suicide attempts


Problems people experience during a clinical depression include:

• Frequently feeling on the verge of tears
• Waking up early in the morning, with difficulty returning to sleep
• Feeling worse in the morning
• Feeling anxious or irritable
• A gloomy view of the future
• Physical pain or headaches
• Cravings for certain foods

Generally if you experience this symptoms thats don't necessarily indicate you must have depression, instead you should take it further to eliminate this factors