MAJOR DEPRESSION: DSM-V Criteria, Symptoms, Causes and Treatment

  • Jul 26, 2021
click fraud protection
Major depression: DSM-V criteria, symptoms, causes and treatment

During the course of our lives it is normal to suffer periods in which we feel sadder than usual and although we consider Many times being sad is not positive, the truth is that these feelings can help us a lot to grow and develop as people.

However, when these feelings of sadness persist over time and greatly invade different areas of our life, we may be talking about a pathological disorder, the depression.

We can find ourselves facing different types of depression, in this Psychology-Online article we will expose the major depression: DSM-V criteria, symptoms, causes and treatment.

You may also like: Panic Disorder: Symptoms, DSM V Criteria, and Treatment

Index

  1. What is major depression?
  2. Major depression: DSM-V criteria
  3. Symptoms of major depression
  4. Causes of major depression
  5. Treatment of major depression
  6. Psychotherapeutic treatment of major depression
  7. Pharmacological treatment of major depression

What is major depression?

Major depression is part of the so-called mood disorders, in which a constant feeling of sadness, low spirits, lack of motivation to carry out those activities in which you previously enjoyed is reflected. These feelings affect the whole set of our feelings, thoughts and behaviors, which produces a

interference in all areas of our lives, such as personal, work and / or relational.

Major depression is not considered simply a temporary sadness, which can be improved from one day to the next, in the vast majority of occasions requires treatment In the long term, however, don't worry, in most cases it is reversible.

Major depression: DSM-V criteria.

In order to classify a depressive disorder as a major depressive disorder, the DSM-V proposes the criteria that must be taken into account for its diagnosis. The DSM-V criteria for major depression are:

  1. In order to determine the occurrence of a major depressive disorder, five (or more) of the following symptoms must appear at the same time During two weeks, representing a change in the way the person had to function that is seen in a depressed mood, or, in the loss of interest in things, of motivation or pleasure:
  • A depressed mood should be appreciated much of the day, almost every day.
  • There is a decrease in interest in the activities that used to generate this emotion, during most of the day, most of the days.
  • Weight gain or loss occurs.
  • Alterations in sleep habits, such as insomnia or hypersomnia, almost every day.
  • You and your environment observe greater agitation or psychomotor decline, almost every day.
  • The person feels fatigued and / or lacks energy, almost every day.
  • Feelings of excessive guilt and worthlessness appear.
  • Difficulty staying focused or making decisions.
  • Thoughts related to death appear on a recurring basis, which may be suicidal ideations without a plan determined to carry it out, suicide attempts or previous meditations to carry out the suicide.

The following criteria must also be met:

  1. The appearance of the symptoms generates a high discomfort that generates a deterioration in the different areas in which the person is, such as work or social.
  2. The symptoms cannot be related to the consumption of a substance, to a physiological effect or to a general medical condition.
  3. The depressive episode does not match better with a diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder, schizophrenia, schizophreniform, delusional disorder, or any other unspecified disorder of the disorders psychotic.
  4. There has never been a manic or hypomanic episode.

Symptoms of Major Epression.

Let's take a closer look at the symptoms that appear in major depressive disorder, which can be divided into psychological, physical, behavioral, intellectual or cognitive and social symptoms, being the following:

  1. Psychological: the person experiences a constant feeling of sadness, accompanied by excessive feelings of guilt or worthlessness. Thoughts related to death appear, manifested with recurrent suicidal ideations, with or without a plan of achievement, and suicide attempts or consensual suicides may occur.
  2. Physical: it is common for a person suffering from major depression to have sleep hygiene disorders, which They can present with insomnia or hypersomnia, as well as alterations in diet, causing loss or increase of weight. Motor skills can also be affected, with slowness of movement and a constant feeling of fatigue and lack of energy.
  3. Physical: it is common for a person suffering from major depression to have sleep hygiene disorders, which They can present with insomnia or hypersomnia, as well as alterations in diet, causing loss or increase of weight. Motor skills can also be affected, with slowness of movement and a constant feeling of fatigue and lack of energy.
  4. Behavioral: there is a lack of interest in activities that previously generated satisfaction, along with a lack of motivation.
  5. Intellectual or cognitive: a decrease in concentration, decision-making and thinking in general may appear.
  6. Social: the symptoms presented in depressive disorder can lead to isolation of the person, thereby producing a deterioration in social relationships.

Causes of Major Depression.

To talk about the causes of depression we must bear in mind biological, personal and environmental factors. Its origin can be attributed to one or more of these factors.

Biological factors

  • Alteration in neurotransmitters: our brain works from the correct communication between the neurons of the brain. Neurons can communicate with each other through the neurotransmitters, such as the dopamine, the serotonin and norepinephrine. In depression, these neural connections are altered and therefore a brain malfunction occurs.
  • Alterations in brain areas: in depression there is an alteration in the frontal area and in the limbic system of our brain.
  • Genetic alterations: compared to genetic inheritance in depression, where there is a greater chance of developing a depressive disorder if a close relative has suffered one, a genetic factor in said disorder is glimpsed. However, currently a gene that is related to the onset of depression has not yet been identified.

Personality related factors

The personality each makes us more vulnerable to a possible development of a pathology. In depression, the personalities more insecure, anxious, dependent, perfectionist, and self-demanding, are more likely to develop depression.

Environmental factors

Certain traumatic or stressful events in the person's life, such as loss of a family member, grief, precarious economic situations, acute illnesses,… Can predispose the development of the disease.

Major Depression: DSM-V Criteria, Symptoms, Causes and Treatment - Causes of Major Depression

Treatment of major depression.

The treatment of major depression must be established individually, since the disorder can present in very different ways in each person.

Faced with this, we can have different therapeutic alternatives, focusing on the psychological and pharmacological treatment. These two modalities are not mutually exclusive; in fact, the vast majority of remissions of depressive disorder occur due to the benefit of the two interventions in combination.

Psychotherapeutic treatment of major depression.

In depressive disorders, the therapeutic modality that has demonstrated its greatest efficacy has been the cognitive behavioral therapy. The objective of this therapeutic modality is to produce a change in the emotions that the person feels, in the thoughts that have become established and the behaviors you develop because of these thoughts and feelings.

The person suffering from major depression maintains a negative vision about him, the world and the future, hopelessly. This perception appears because of a set of irrational automatic thoughts that he has established and that produce alterations in his daily life, for example "why should I find a partner if no one is going to love me" these thoughts arise spontaneously and naturally, because the person has them internalized. Cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy aims to change thoughts automatics that maintain the disorder, through healthier, more positive and rational constructions, based on the technique of cognitive restructuring. Faced with the possibility of changing this set of thoughts, the person will begin to act differently, to mobilize and thus to feel much better.

On the other hand, it will also treat Personality traits that maintain depressive disorder, to help the person to have a less vulnerability depressed mood.

In this intervention, learning is important to be able to identify the early onset of symptoms and possible relapses.

Finally, taking into account that a comorbidity with peaks of anxiety and stress is very common in depression, it will be important to equip the person with strategies to combat these anxiety symptoms, where the therapist will offer you different relaxation techniques or improvement in the ability to Problem resolution to be able to face them.

Pharmacological treatment of major depression.

The main axis of the pharmacological treatment of major depression resides in the drugs called antidepressants. The need for its administration has been empirically demonstrated in severe or moderate cases of major depression.

An important aspect when taking it is that the person must be aware that the effects of drug treatment for depression start to take effect within 3 to 4 weeks of your administration. On the other hand, it should be noted that we can find a wide variety of antidepressant drugs, which will be prescribed according to the needs and characteristics of each patient.

For the pharmacological treatment of the disorder, we can make use of the following medications for major depression:

  • Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).
  • Serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs).
  • Atypical antidepressants.
  • Tricyclic antidepressants.
  • Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOI).

If a loved one has depression, you may be interested How to help a person with depression.

This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to Major depression: DSM-V criteria, symptoms, causes and treatment, we recommend that you enter our category of Clinical psychology.

Bibliography

  • American Psychiatric Association. (2014). DSM-5. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Madrid: Editorial Médica Panamericana, S.A.
  • Alarcón, R. Et al. (2003). Clinical Practice Guideline for Depressive Disorders. Murcia region: health concierge.
  • Baringoltz, S. (2007). Cognitive therapy and depression. Integration of cognitive contributions to psychotherapy and Cognitive Therapy.
  • Pérez, E. et al. (2017). Prevalence, causes and treatment of major depression. Rev Biomed, 28, 89-115.
  • Royal Collage of Psychiatrists. (2009). Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT). 10/18/2017, from the Spanish Society of Psychiatry (SEP).
  • Ruiz, M., Díaz, M & Villalobos, A. (2012). Manual of Cognitive-Behavioral Intervention Techniques. Bilbao: Editorial Desclée De Brouwer, S.A.

Major depression: DSM-V criteria, symptoms, causes and treatment

instagram viewer