Depression and Sleep

Depression is the queen of psychiatric disorders. Discovery of REM deviations (short REM Latency, increased REM density) made REM sleep a biological marker for depression.

Depression remains one of the most debilitating and paradoxically treatable disorders in mental health. As many as 1 in 5 people will have a bout of clinical depression at some point in their life. In addition, every episode increases the likelihood of further episodes. Therefore, aggressive treatment of the first episode can lead to a better long-term outcome.

Part of the challenge of early and accurate identification is knowing the signs and symptoms. Many patients with clinical depression do not present with sadness and hopelessness as chief complaints. In fact, many patients will deny these symptoms and remain convinced that they have a medical problem. Sleep disturbances, fatigue, lethargy and changes in appetite can often push a patient to a general practitioner or medical specialist instead of a mental health professional.

from sleepandhealth.com