Chronic Illness & Mental Health

Depression - Chronic Illnesses cover image

Depression is a real illness. Treatment can help you live to the fullest extent possible, even when you have another illness.

It is common to feel sad or discouraged after a heart attack, a cancer diagnosis, or if you are trying to manage a chronic condition like pain. You may be facing new limits on what you can do and feel anxious about treatment outcomes and the future. It may be hard to adapt to a new reality and to cope with the changes and ongoing treatment that come with the diagnosis. Your favorite activities, like hiking or gardening, may be harder to do.

Temporary feelings of sadness are expected, but if these and other symptoms last longer than a couple of weeks, you may have depression. Depression affects your ability to carry on with daily life and to enjoy work, leisure, friends, and family. The health effects of depression go beyond mood—depression is a serious medical illness with many symptoms, including physical ones. Some symptoms of depression are:

Feeling sad, irritable, or anxious
Feeling empty, hopeless, guilty, or worthless
Loss of pleasure in usually-enjoyed hobbies or activities, including sex
Fatigue and decreased energy, feeling listless
Trouble concentrating, remembering details, and making decisions
Not being able to sleep, or sleeping too much. Waking too early
Eating too much or not wanting to eat at all, possibly with unplanned weight gain or loss
Thoughts of death, suicide or suicide attempts
Aches or pains, headaches, cramps, or digestive problems without a clear physical cause and/or that do not ease even with treatment