Sadness and lack of motivation in depression

Lack of motivation and sadness are not enough to understand how this disorder affects us.

Any psychological disorder can be analyzed by looking at its component parts and symptoms, and depression is no exception. In your case, two of the phenomena that most characterize it are lack of motivation and sadness, which are reflected in virtually all areas of the lives of those who develop depression.

The aim of this article is to help you to recognize the way in which depression expresses itself through lack of motivation and sadness, and how to intervene in the treatment of depression.and how to intervene in therapy to reduce their strength.

• Article related: "Types of depression: its symptoms, causes and characteristics".

The characteristics of depression

The depression is one of the mental disorders that more affect to the population in the western countries.It is estimated that in these nations the percentage of people who will develop depression at some point in their lives is between 8 and 15%.

Unfortunately, however, many of these cases do not need to be diagnosed, and there are even those who do not go to mental health professionals because they do not know how to differentiate between simple emotional discomfort and depression.

The truth is that difficulties in correctly identifying emotions and feelings create problems in the face of any mood disorder. in the face of any mood disorder, and in the case of depression, this psychological state is often "labeled" as simple sadness and lack of motivation. Although it is true that in a summarized way these two terms can cover a good part of the effects of this alteration, it is necessary to understand that depression is more than that.

Lack of motivation and sadness as facets of depression

Let's start by looking at how we can distinguish between simple unmotivation and sadness and their "versions" in depression.

Sadness

Sadness that is not associated with a psychological disorder is a state of mind that is usually difficult to objectify, but is usually expressed by a review of ideas of why the present is unfavorable for one and says negative things about oneself, as well as in a melancholic fixation on the present.as well as a melancholic fixation on past times that are considered better than the here and now.

This is a psychological state in which feelings of guilt and regret are very frequent and in which emotionally painful comparisons generally predominate: comparisons between oneself and others, between the past and the present, between the past and the (supposed) future, and so on.

On the other hand, most people are able to identify the reason(s) for which they are sad, and are able to identify the reason(s) for which they are sadThe sadness can be caused by: a bad result in an exam, a love breakup, the death of a loved one, the longing for a happy childhood that contrasts sharply with the present, etc.

In addition, sadness often goes hand in hand with crying and a feeling of strong fatigue, of being "out of combat", which leads to giving up on improving the situation, something that distinguishes it from other forms of negative emotionality such as anxiety. In any case, in the great majority of the occasions the sadness vanishes in the period of a few days or weeks.

The sadness that arises in association with depressive disorder presents some differences that are worth knowing. First, its duration and consistency over time is greater. It is true that a person with depression does not usually remain for several months experiencing exactly the same emotional state, but in general this remains significantly low during this time. On the other hand, although crying is not always frequent, negative thoughts about the present and the future are common and a feeling of hopelessness arises, that nothing will change for the better.

Demotivation

Demotivation is usually understood as a lack of willingness to participate in activities, and the inability to get excited about projects that should be important to the person. This psychological state translates into procrastination (the tendency to put off responsibilities that need to be taken care of as soon as possible), frustration at not knowing what to do, and a passive attitude, so that others have to take the initiative.

In depression, demotivation is more than just a lack of interest.. In many cases, it consists of a real inability to feel pleasure and even anticipatory pleasure, and it is also very common to experience intense psychological fatigue. In this state, the person can only aspire to perform the most important activities, and sometimes not even those: it is common to fall into hygiene problems, social relationships with friends and often also with family, etc. are weakened.

At the same time, this lifestyle enhances feelings of sadness and hopelessness, so that the problem is fedThe problem feeds on itself... unless you decide to fight depression by going to the root of the disorder.

What is done in therapy in the face of this low mood?

We psychology professionals are trained to train patients with depression in. habits and thought patterns that undermine this mood disorder.. The goal is to help him to generate by himself situations capable of breaking this vicious circle of demotivation and negative thoughts, to gain autonomy and to be able to experience happiness again. Moreover, all this without the side effects of pharmacological treatments.

As a psychologist specializing in adults, I know that although the feelings and emotions that make the person with depression suffer are unique and non-transferable, this does not prevent them from overcoming this state of mind through scientifically proven and effective methods. That process involves looking beyond the labels we popularly use to "summarize" emotions.

Bibliographical references:

• Belloch, A.; Sandín, B. and Ramos, F. (2010). Manual de Psicopatología. Volume I and II. Madrid: McGraw-Hill.
• de Zwart PL, Jeronimus BF, de Jonge P, et al. (October 2019). Empirical evidence for definitions of episode, remission, recovery, relapse and recurrence in depression: a systematic review. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences. 28 (5): 544–562.
• National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health. Depression. (2009). The treatment and management of depression in adults (updated edition). National Clinical Practice Guideline Number 90. London: British Psychological Society and Royal College of Psychiatrists.
• Organización Mundial de la Salud. CIE 10. (1992). Décima Revisión de la Clasificación Internacional de Las Enfermedades. Trastornos Mentales y del Comportamiento: Descripciones Clínicas y pautas para el Diagnóstico. Madrid: Meditor.