How Long Can Depressive Episodes Last

Whats The Difference Between Borderline Personality Disorder And Bipolar Disorder

While borderline personality disorder and bipolar disorder have similar symptoms and are often confused for each other, theyre distinct conditions.

BPD involves a longstanding pattern of abrupt, moment-to-moment swings in moods, behavior and self-image that are often triggered by conflicts in interactions with other people. Nonsuicidal self-injury is also common in BPD but not in bipolar disorder.

Bipolar disorder is different from BPD because it involves distinct, longer-lasting episodes of mania/hypomania and/or depression. Several things can trigger manic or depressive episodes, such as sleep changes, stress, medications and substance use.

What Treatments Make Depression Go Away

Clinical depression is a serious medical condition. It’s unlikely that depression will go away on its own. Without treatment, the symptoms might become much worse.

Like many other medical conditions, early treatment can result in a better outcome. With treatment, your depression symptoms can become easier to manage. Treatment can also shorten the length of your depressive episodes, or even prevent them from happening again.

There are many treatment options for depression. None of these options are guaranteed to make depression go away, but they may help you find relief and build skills to manage symptoms more successfully. Some treatment options include:

Therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy is the most common type of therapy recommended for people with clinical depression. It can help you challenge negative thoughts associated with depression, and create new, healthy thought patterns and beliefs. CBT can also reduce the chances of experiencing another depressive episode³.

Medication

Finding the right medication, dosage, and combination can take time, but there are many options available for the treatment of depression. You can work with your health care provider or a psychiatrist on finding the medication that works best for you.

Lifestyle changes

Look for ways to expand your support network, either through family and friends or by joining a support group.

How Long Can Episodes Last

There’s no hard-and-fast rule about how long bipolar mood episodes last. Often, Dr. Potash says, people, experience major depressive symptoms for several weeks or months, then move into a period of mania or hypomania for several weeks or months. “It’s typically a slow change process,” he says.

Some people with bipolar disorder experience rapid cycling, in which they shift from high to low mood quickly over the course of days or even hours. According to Dr. Elmashat, rapid cycling involves one episode of either depression or mania, or hypomania four times in 12 months, and it can occur in both bipolar 1 and bipolar 2.

Most often, Dr. Potash says, rapid cycling with bipolar affects younger people, like teenagers, and it requires more intensive treatment than typical mood cycling.

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How Do I Know If I Have Clinical Depression

A doctor is required to diagnose clinical depression. You may be clinically depressed if you’ve experienced five or more depression symptoms every day for more than two weeks. These symptoms can include:

• Feeling sad or empty

• Loss of interest in hobbies, social engagements, or sex

• Thinking about death or suicide.

If you are experiencing these symptoms, make an appointment with your healthcare provider. They can help you find the right diagnosis and treatment for your symptoms, which can reduce the length of a depressive episode.

Who Does Bipolar Disorder Affect

Bipolar disorder can affect anyone. The average age of onset is 25 years, but, more rarely, it can start as early as early childhood or as late as in your 40s or 50s.

Although bipolar disorder affects people assigned female at birth and people assigned male at birth in equal numbers, the condition tends to affect them differently.

People AFAB with bipolar disorder may switch moods more quickly. When people with bipolar disorder experience four or more manic or depressive episodes in a year, this is called rapid cycling. Varying levels of sex hormones and thyroid hormones, together with the tendency for people AFAB to be prescribed antidepressants, may contribute to the more rapid cycling in this population.

People AFAB with bipolar disorder may also experience more periods of depression than people AMAB.

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How Long Depression Lasts Depends On Many Factors

Depression affects everyone differently.

Even though there are a few established symptoms of the condition, not everyone experiences them in the same way.

For some people, depression symptoms are persistent over the years. For others, symptoms will come and go at times.

Some research suggests that the symptoms of clinical depression can last an average of 10 months if no other mental health conditions are present.

But this is not always the case. Because there are different types of depression, symptom duration varies greatly.

For example, a depressive episode caused by mourning might last a few days or weeks and often resolves on its own.

In most cases, however, depression requires the support of a health professional.

There are many types of depression, and the type youre experiencing may impact how long or intense your symptoms are.

What Is Major Depressive Disorder

Major depressive disorder is a serious mental illness that affects how people feel, think, and go about their everyday tasks. The condition can also impact a persons sleep habits, appetite, and ability to enjoy life.

Major depressive disorder isnt something that eventually passes. While most people feel sad at times in their lives, major depression is when a person is in a depressed mood most of the day, nearly every day, for at least two weeks. Some people feel depressed without knowing why.

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Factors That Rule Out A Depressive Episode

If a person is meeting symptom criteria for a major depressive episode, there are still some factors that would either rule out a major depressive episode or would lead to a different diagnosis.

• The symptoms must not be caused by a substance such as an illegal drug or a medication.
• The symptoms can’t be caused by a medical condition, such as thyroid disorder, lupus, or a vitamin deficiency.

Mood Swings Vs Mood Episodes

More serious “mood swings”ones that can seriously threaten a person’s well-being or impact their daily scheduleare a common characteristic of bipolar disorder. When related to the disease, they’re known technically as “mood episodes.”

Though there are a few different types of bipolar disorder , they all involve “clear changes in mood, energy, and activity levels,” according to the National Institute of Mental Health .

The biggest difference between a typical mood swing and a mood episode in bipolar disorder is the length and severity.

Bipolar mood episodes consist of very high highs and extremely low lows for long stretches of time. They require medical treatment from a trained psychiatrist, psychologist, or clinical social worker experienced in bipolar disorder management.

Here, mental health experts explain what a bipolar mood episode looks like, including how long it can last, what can trigger it, and the best ways to manage it.

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How Long Can Depression Last

Depression doesnt have an exact amount of time that it will last for. Depending on the severity of each circumstance, depressive episodes can last anywhere from a few days to months at a time. Those suffering from major depressive disorder can even experience a depressive episode spanning from three to 10 months. In order to meet the criterion for a clinical diagnosis of depression, however, the episode must last for at least two weeks. This doesnt mean that an individual cannot suffer from depression if it lasts for less time, though, and each individuals experience with depression will differ.

It is also possible that individuals may experience varying lengths of their own depressive episodes, due to a number of different factors. For example, the winter months often prove more difficult for those suffering from depression, especially when considering things like Seasonal Affective Disorder , which can create even more feelings of depression. While there is no set timeframe in which everyone experiences depression, keeping track of the length of ones own depressive episodes, as well as any episodes that do not cleanly fit into any established or known patterns, can help create a more informed plan on the various factors at play in ones depression.

Risk Factors For Recurrent Depressive Episodes

Risk factors for depression can include a combination of genetic and environmental factors as well as personal experiences, like stressful events or trauma.

Some examples of risk factors for recurrent depressive episodes:

• How old the person was when they had their first depressive episode
• The severity of the first depressive episode
• The presence of other mental health problems
• Family history of depression
• The presence of stressful life events

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What Causes Depressive Episodes

If you are experiencing a depressive episode, it likely means that you are living with major depressive disorder. This is a common mental health issue, affecting almost eight percent of American adults. Generally, this condition manifests via major depressive episodes, where symptoms tend to flare up for weeks at a time.

Since depressive episodes are caused by an ongoing mental health condition, they are much more complicated to treat than a typical period of sadness. That said, there are ways to get out of a depressive episode, especially if you have professional help.

Duration Of Major Depressive Episodes In The General Population: Results From The Netherlands Mental Health Survey And Incidence Study

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 January 2018

Affiliation:Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction, Utrecht and De Galderse Roos, Institute for Mental Health Care, Arnhem

Ron De Graaf

Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction, Utrecht

Rob V Bijl

Research and Documentation Center of the Ministry of Justice, The Hague

Aartjan T. F. Beekman

Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction, Utrecht and Department of Psychiatry, University of Amsterdam

Johan Ormel

Department of Psychiatry, University of Groningen

Willem A. Nolen

University Medical Centre, Utrecht and Altrecht Institute for Mental Health Care, Utrecht, The Netherlands

*

Jan Spijker, Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction , PO Box 725, 3500 AS Utrecht, The Netherlands. Tel: +31 302971100 fax: +31 302971111 e-mail:

Data on the duration of major depressive episodes in the general population are sparse.

To assess the duration of MDE and its clinical and socio-demographic determinants in a study group drawn from the general population with newly originated episodes of major depression.

The Netherlands Mental Health Survey and Incidence Study is a prospective epidemiological survey in the adult population , using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview. Duration of MDE over 2 years was assessed with a Life Chart Interview.

Type

Copyright

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What Are The Signs And Symptoms Of Depression

At least five of the following symptoms must have been present during the same two-week period and at least one of the symptoms must be diminished interest/pleasure or a depressed mood.

• Depressed mood: For children and adolescents, this can also be irritability
• Significant weight change or appetite disturbance: Failure to gain weight in children and weight gain in adults

Major Depressive Episodes In Bipolar Disorder

The Low Side of Bipolar Disorder

Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital.

AleksandarNakic / Getty Images

In order for a diagnosis of bipolar disorder to be made, there must also be a history of or a current manic or hypomanic episode. In bipolar I disorder, there doesn’t need to be a depressive episode, although in most cases, there is.

In bipolar II, there needs to be the presence of a hypomanic and a major depressive episode over the course of the illness. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders contains a list of specific symptoms that may be present and specifies several rules about those symptoms.

For a diagnosis of a major depressive episode in bipolar disorder, the symptoms have to be continuous for at least two weeks . In addition, a person must experience at least a depressed mood or a loss of interest, and at least five or more of the remaining symptoms listed below .

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Separate Yourself From The Depression

A condition does not define a person they are not their illness. When depression symptoms begin, some people find it helpful to repeat: I am not depression, I just have depression.

A person should remind themselves of all the other aspects of themselves. They may also be a parent, sibling, friend, spouse, neighbor, and colleague. Each person has their own strengths, abilities, and positive qualities that make them who they are.

What Are The Side Effects Of Bipolar Disorder Medications

Side effects of bipolar disorder medications are common and vary by medication. Its important to talk with your healthcare provider about what you can expect when taking certain medications. Its also important to tell them if youre experiencing side effects.

Never stop taking your medication unless your healthcare provider tells you to do so. Abruptly stopping medication can cause severe side effects and trigger severe episodes.

The most common side effects of bipolar disorder medications include:

• Akathisia feelings of restlessness and agitation with a compelling need to move, rock or pace.

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Depressive Episodes Vs Grief

Grief is considered the closest to a depressive episode one can experience. Indeed, grief and depressive episodes share many aspects, such as a deep and unrelenting emotional pain tied to a terrible sense of loss.

They differ, however, in both the recognized source of their pain, and in which of their shared features are more commonly related to each experience.

Firstly, it should be noted that unlike depression, grief is not considered a disorder, but a normative part of being alive. A deep and unrelenting emotional pain that one experiences following a significant loss, grief could appear due to the death of a loved one, the loss of ones social standing, a financial disaster, a debilitating illness, or even the loss of an idea, e.g., the belief in a happily ever after, following a divorce. We all deal with loss, and we all grieve for the more important aspects we have come to rely on which are no longer parts of our lives.

It is this inability to come to terms with what makes depression a mental health disorder, and the main difference between it and the grieving process. That said, several distinctions between the two have also been noted: according to the DSM-V, depressive episodes are usually marked by a lowered mood and an inability to feel happiness or enjoy oneself. Grief, on the other hand, is marked more by feelings of emptiness and loss.

Is It Sadness Or Is It A Depression Episode

The loss of a loved one, a missed job opportunity, the breakdown of a relationship, children moving away from home there are various stressful events in life that can make you sad.

However, feeling sad in response to these life events does not qualify as depression because the sadness passes after some time. In contrast, depression is a mood disorder that can happen without a specific cause and lasts for more than two weeks.

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Professional Mental Health Treatment

It can be hard to admit, but sometimes a depressive episode is too big to handle on your own. But accepting professional help is okay. In fact, in many cases it is the best way to get your life back on track and to get rid of your depressive episode.

At Ridgeview Hospital, our adult psychiatric program exists to help people with issues like depressive episodes. Through inpatient care with mental health professionals, we provide evidence-based treatments like:

• Individual-focused therapy
• Proactive discharge planning

If youve tried other methods and you still cant get out of a depressive episode, then its time to turn to the professionals. To learn more about how we can help, call our friendly admissions specialists at or ask your questions online. Figuring out how to get out of a depressive episode can be challenging, but well help you get your life back under control.

What Is The Outlook Of Bipolar Disorder

The prognosis for bipolar disorder is often poor unless its properly treated. Many people with bipolar disorder who receive appropriate treatment can live fulfilling and productive lives.

Bipolar disorder results in approximately nine years reduction in expected life span, and as many as1 in 5 people with bipolar disorder commit suicide. An estimated 60% of all people with bipolar disorder have drug or alcohol dependence.

This is why its essential to seek medical care and stay committed to treatment for bipolar disorder.

Regular and continued use of medication can help reduce episodes of mania and depression. By knowing how to recognize the symptoms and triggers of these episodes, theres a better chance for effective treatment and finding coping methods that may prevent long periods of illness, extended hospital stays and suicide.

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