Dysthymia: Symptoms
Dysthymia, commonly referred to as persistent depressive disorder, is a mental and behavioural condition that predominantly affects mood. It shares many of the same cognitive and physical issues as major depressive disorder , but its symptoms endure longer. Robert Spitzer substituted the idea for the phrase "depressive personality" in the late 1970s. Depression is a mental health condition that affects your body, emotions, and thoughts. It has an impact on your eating and sleeping habits, as well as how you think and feel about yourself. It differs from being depressed or having a "blue" mood. It cannot be willed or hoped away, and neither is it a sign of weakness. People who are depressed are unable to "snap out of it" and recover. The key to rehabilitation is treatment. Dysthymia affects women twice as often as men. Some people may also have depression or bipolar disorder. Dysthymia is milder, yet more long lasting than major depression. Each person ma...