Mental Health

While everyone goes through periods of feeling down, these low moods often resolve themselves. It’s not the same when you’re depressed; this isn’t a feeling you can just shrug off and get over.

When feelings of depression persist and begin to affect your ability to work, socialize, or enjoy time with family, it’s time to consider professional support. If you experience several of the following symptoms for more than two weeks, please schedule an appointment with the doctors at Elite Medical Clinic:

• Loss of interest in daily activities
• Feeling hopeless or worthless
• Feeling fatigued
• Changes in sleep habits
• Changes in eating habits
• Inability to concentrate
• Weight gain or loss
• Agitation or restlessness
• Thoughts of suicide

Sometimes you feel anxious because you’re facing a new situation. Anxiety can also sneak up on you through the cumulative impact of daily stress. You can’t avoid anxiety, but it usually subsides after you face the situation or find time to relax and unwind from stress.

Anxiety begins to affect your mental and physical health when it’s constant or lasts a long time. Ongoing anxiety raises levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which keeps your body in a state of high alert and has physical and mental health consequences.

Persistent anxiety causes various symptoms. You may feel irritable, tense, constantly apprehensive, or filled with dread. It raises your heart rate, causes an upset stomach, and can make it hard to breathe. Severe anxiety may trigger a panic attack.

When you begin to avoid situations that make you anxious, you have trouble working, or stop spending time with friends and family, please consider getting help for your anxiety.

There are several different types of anxiety, but one of the most misunderstood is social anxiety disorder. It's not just being shy, introverted, or awkward with making small talk at parties. Social anxiety disorder is a persistent fear of situations where you must socialize or are expected to perform.

If you worry about your performance or you’ve become isolated, miss days of work or school, or purposefully avoid daily activities, call or book an appointment online to get help for overcoming social anxiety.