Major Depressive Disorder

Running head: PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDER
PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDER
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1PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS
MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER
Major Depressive Disorder is also known as depression in clinical terms. It is a
mental disorder that is characterized by quintessential two weeks of low mood/ aversion of
activity that has been present across most situations. The Most Depressive Disorder is
accompanied by low self confidence, lack of interest in daily matters and normally enjoyable
activities, low energy and pain without a clear cause. The depressed people occassionally
have false beliefs regarding various aspects of life or see or hear things that other people do
not. Some patients have periods of depression seperated by years of normalcy while the other
patients always have the symptoms available. The psychological illness of Major Depressive
Disorder can affect a person’s life in a completely negative way. Their daily work, including
working, studying, eating and general habits can be highly affected by the depressive
episodes that the patients of the respective disease often face. It has been estimated that
throughout the world, people who are diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder die due to
attempted suicide or psychosomatic illnesses (Otte et al., 2016). Major Depressive Disorder
has become an epidemic in today’s cosmopolitan society where a different kind of depression
and loneliness has grappled the mind of the modern man and woman. The American
Psychiatric Association (APA) has successfully added Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) to
the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM- III) in the year 1980. The
Major Depressive Disorder is a cosmopolitan mental illness that is very common in men,
women and children alike, however, societal conditionings and patriarchal oppression seems
to grapple women with the disorder more than men (Kupfer, Frank & Phillips, 2016).
CAUSES OF THE DISORDER
The exact causes of the disorder (Major Depressive Disorder MDD) is still unknown
to the psychoanalysists and the researchers. However, it has been estimated that the main and

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customary causes of the disorder can be linked with genetic, environmental and
psychological factors. The certain risks factors that underly the disorder are family history of
the condition, major life changes, side effects of certain medication, chronic health problems
and substance abuse history. It has also been examined that about more than 40 per cent of
the cases have shown risk factors underlying in the familial history. Females are effected as
twice as that of the males studies found out (Ferrari et al., 2013).
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF THE DISORDER
The major depressive disorder affects a person’s family and personal relationships,
educational, professional life, love and family life, eating and sleeping habits and allover
health of a person. The impact of major depression on the physical and mental health of a
patient is compared to symptoms of chronic health issues and medical condition such as
diabetes. Psychosomatic effects on the body, such as losing or gaining weight, weakness in
the body, losing eyesight or hallucinating, feeling of worthlessness and delusional feeling can
cause physical symptoms such as neck pain, back and head pain. The patients typically go
through a semi psychiatric disorder which is known as anhedonia, which means inability to
experience pleasure in all the activities that were pleasurable before while a patient suffers
from mild to chronic symptom of major depressive disorder. Depressive people tend to be
preoccupied thoughts and fears of worthlessness, inappropriate guilt, self blame that can lead
to self harm and suicidal thoughts, thoughts of regret, hopelessness and helplessness. Self
harted is another quintessential characteristics of depressed people. They utilize many
irrational thinking in order to blame them for the deeds which they deem to be have done
wrong. However, the environment where the patient is surviving also depends upon its
repressed or expressed symptoms, for instance, if a housewife suffers from depression and
the in-laws do not understand her or make the situation more toxic, she might suffer more
from depression and at times, can also be suicidal or in any unfortunate case, she can even