Unmasking Depression: Your Guide to Understanding & Help | Ohio Psychiatric Services

Welcome to Ohio Psychiatric Services & TMS Center where hope begins. We all experience feeling down or sad from time to time. But depression is not just sadness. It is a serious mood disorder involving a range of physical and psychological symptoms that interfere with your day-to-day life. It takes away the simple joys in life and creates a dark wall in front of you. It is important to understand that depression is not a weakness or a character flaw. It is a chemical imbalance in the brain that needs professional diagnosis and treatment. Understanding and recognizing the most common signs and symptoms of depression and seeking support is the first step towards a depression free life. Enduring Sadness, anxiety or "empty mood": Have you been feeling like a dark cloud is following you around, no matter what you do? It can feel like a lingering sense of sadness or despair that seems to have no end in sight. Altered Sleep Patterns: Are you tossing and turning at night or struggling to drag yourself out of bed in the morning? Changes in sleep patterns, like insomnia or sleeping too much, could be your body’s way of signaling that something isn’t quite right. Diminished Interest or Pleasure: Remember the things that used to bring a smile to your face? Do those activities now seem like a chore or simply don’t interest you anymore? Fluctuations in Appetite or Weight: Are you experiencing increased comfort eating or having no appetite at all? Changes in appetite and weight can often indicate depression. Persistent Fatigue or Decreased Energy: Do you feel like you’re running on empty, no matter how much you rest? Chronic fatigue or a noticeable decrease in energy levels can be common when you are depressed. Intense Feelings of Worthlessness, Hopelessness or Guilt: Do you have trouble getting rid of overwhelming feelings of worthlessness or guilt, even over the smallest things? Remember, it could be depression that is throwing a thick blanket of negativity and preventing you from recognizing you are worthy of love and compassion. Impaired Concentration or Decision-Making: Are you having a constant brain fog, making it hard to focus or make simple decisions? Depression can cloud your thoughts and exaggerate minor tasks feel like climbing a mountain. Physical Symptoms: Are you experiencing slowing of physical activity, speech, and thinking or experiencing agitation, increased restlessness and irritability? Unexplained low energy almost every day or having aches, pains, or other physical discomforts could indicate depression, particularly in the absence of other medical health conditions. Social Isolation or Withdrawal: Do you feel like you’d rather be alone than around others? When depressed, social interactions can make you anxious, overwhelmed and forgetful. Thoughts of Death or Suicide: Do you have repeating thoughts of death or suicide, wishing to die, or attempting suicide? (Note: This needs IMMEDIATE treatment) If you have 5 or more of these symptoms for at least 2 weeks and you recognize these as noticeable changes from what is "normal" for you, you may be diagnosed with depression. Hope Starts Today. At Ohio Psychiatric Services, we are dedicated to helping you or your loved ones unmask depression and reclaim your life. We are equipped with novel, FDA approved treatments for depression, including non-drug treatment (TMS-Transcranial magnetic Stimulation) and nasal spray treatment (Spravato). These treatment modalities have helped our patients experience noticeable changes in their mood, energy levels, outlook on life and/or be free from repeated thoughts suicide within hours or days. We encourage you to call us or visit our website https://ohiopsychiatricservices.com/ to get scheduled at any one of our locations and talk to a compassionate provider. (We offer both telehealth and in-office initial evaluations, follow up care and free consult visits for TMS and Spravato treatments.) Are you ready to live a depression free life? Let us help with a personalized treatment plan for your depression today!