What Is Situational Depression?

Depression (major depressive disorder) is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act. Fortunately, it is also treatable. Depression causes feelings of sadness and/or a loss of interest in activities once enjoyed. It can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems and can decrease a person’s ability to function at work and at home.

Depression symptoms can vary from mild to severe and can include:

• Feeling sad or having a depressed mood
• Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed
• Changes in appetite — weight loss or gain unrelated to dieting
• Trouble sleeping or sleeping too much
• Loss of energy or increased fatigue
• Increase in purposeless physical activity (e.g., hand-wringing or pacing) or slowed movements and speech (actions observable by others)
• Feeling worthless or guilty
• Difficulty thinking, concentrating or making decisions
• Thoughts of death or suicide

Symptoms must last at least two weeks for a diagnosis of depression.Depression affects an estimated one in 15 adults (6.7%) in any given year. And one in six people (16.6%) will experience depression at some time in their life. Depression can strike at any time, but on average, first appears during the late teens to mid-20s. Women are more likely than men to experience depression. Some studies show that one-third of women will experience a major depressive episode in their lifetime.

There 9 Types of Depression

1. Major depression

2. Persistent depression

3. Manic depression, or bipolar disorder

4. Depressive psychosis

5. Perinatal depression

6. Premenstrual dysphoric disorder

7. Seasonal depression

8. Situational depression

9. Atypical depression

What is situational depression?

Situational depression is not an official mental health diagnosis on its own. It's classified as an adjustment disorder; it makes it difficult for a person to adjust after experiencing trauma or a dramatic change in day-to-day life.

This is a short-term form of depression that occurs as the result of a traumatic event or change in a person’s life.

Adjustment disorder with depressed mood is another name for this emotional state.

Triggers can include:

• divorce

• loss of a job
• the death of a close friend
• a serious accident
• other major life changes, such as retirement

Situational depression stems from a struggle to come to terms with dramatic life changes. Recovery is possible once an individual comes to terms with a new situation.

For instance, following the death of a parent, it may take a while before a person can accept that a family member is no longer alive. Until acceptance, they may feel unable to move on with their life.Greg Simons, MD, MPH, a Washington-based psychiatrist at Washington Permanente Medical Group, tells Health that situational depression follows an event that leaves a person feeling chronically stressed, upset, or bereaved, and compared to other types of depression tends to be more transient in nature. 

Symptoms can include:

• listlessness
• feelings of hopelessness and sadness
• sleeping difficulties
• frequent episodes of crying
• unfocused anxiety and worry
• loss of concentration
• withdrawal from normal activities as well as from family and friends
• suicidal thoughts

Most people who experience situational depression begin to have symptoms within 90 days of the triggering event.

What causes it?

As the term implies, situational depression is a direct result of a stressful or traumatic situation. That can include dealing with the death of a loved one, loss of a job, divorce or a romantic breakup, a significant diagnosis of illness, or any other situation known to cause intense stress. Though not everyone who experiences a traumatic event will develop situational depression, those who are more prone to classic depression are more likely to have situational depression. “Some people are much more vulnerable to depression because of their genetics or life experiences following stress or traumatic events,” says Dr. Simons. “It's a combination of vulnerability and experience.”

Diagnosis

In order to be diagnosed with adjustment disorder with depressed mood, these symptoms must also cause marked distress and significant impairment in important areas of life functioning.

While situational depression tends to be less severe and not as pervasive as major depressive disorder, this does not make the condition any less "real." Situational depression challenges well-being and can make functioning in daily life difficult.

Treatment

Talking to your doctor can help determine whether you have situational depression. Fortunately, effective treatments can help you manage your symptoms. These often involve treating the symptoms as well as addressing the stressor that triggered these feelings.

Once the stressor has been dealt with, people will begin to adjust and cope as symptoms subside.

Situational depression can be a common and natural reaction to a very stressful or traumatic event. The symptoms are usually short-term and start to improve as:

• 
  
• Time passes
• The individual recovers
• The situation improves

Mild cases of situational depression can often be handled through self-care and coping strategies. More serious cases may require professional treatment and support.

Treatments for situational depression may include individual counseling, group support, and medications to address serious symptoms of depression. In some cases, a combination of psychotherapy and medications may be used to treat situational depression.

Psychotherapy approaches may include the use of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), which is an effective treatment for depression. CBT helps replace negative thinking patterns with more adaptive ones. It also helps people develop better resilience to stress and improves coping skills, making it helpful for preventing future relapses of depressive symptoms.

Medications to treat situational depression may include antidepressants and anti-anxiety drugs.