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Depression definitions

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  • Major Depressive Disorder
    A mood condition marked by persistent sadness and loss of interest, requiring at least five symptoms for over two weeks.
  • Anhedonia
    A loss of pleasure or interest in activities that were once enjoyable, often seen as a core feature of depression.
  • Persistent Depressive Disorder
    A chronic mood disturbance lasting at least two years with milder symptoms, never reaching a full major depressive episode.
  • Double Depression
    A condition where chronic low mood is punctuated by one or more episodes of major depression within a two-year period.
  • Seasonal Affective Disorder
    A depressive pattern linked to seasonal changes, most commonly emerging during fall and winter due to reduced sunlight.
  • Perinatal Depression
    A depressive episode occurring during pregnancy or after childbirth, influenced by hormonal and life changes.
  • Serotonin
    A neurotransmitter whose low levels are associated with depressive symptoms and targeted by many antidepressant treatments.
  • Norepinephrine
    A neurotransmitter involved in mood regulation, with decreased levels linked to depressive states.
  • Heritability
    The proportion of depression risk attributed to genetic factors, with higher rates seen in chronic or severe cases.
  • Anterior Cingulate Cortex
    A brain region showing increased activation during emotional processing in depression, especially with negative information.
  • Amygdala
    A brain structure involved in emotion, often displaying heightened activity in individuals experiencing depression.
  • Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex
    A brain area linked to cognitive control, typically underactive in depression when processing negative stimuli.
  • Negative Schema
    A cognitive bias leading to persistent negative thoughts about oneself, the world, and the future in depression.
  • Attribution Style
    A habitual way of explaining negative events as internal, global, and stable, contributing to depressive thinking.
  • Helplessness Theory
    A model proposing that depression is maintained by attributing negative events to personal, pervasive, and unchangeable causes.