Depression due to the death of a loved one: what it is, symptoms and causes

Depression is one of the most complex concepts in the field of mental health.. Not only does it appear in a wide variety of forms and symptoms, but also, as in virtually all mental disorders, there is no single cause that triggers it.

However, among all the possible experiences capable of favoring the appearance of depressive symptoms, it is known that the death of a loved one is one of the most frequent. This is a relative frequency, since the majority of people who have to grieve for a loss of this type do not develop depression; however, in some cases psychological help is necessary.

In this article we will see what is basic information about depression over the death of a loved one, and what can be done to deal with this in the best possible way from the treatment of mental health professionals.

• Related article: "Grief: coping with the loss of a loved one"

What is depression due to the death of a loved one?

Let's start with the basics: is this a different kind of depression? Keep in mind that the very idea that there are various types of depression is somewhat controversial. In practice, these classifications are used to better describe each of the cases with which one is working, but that does not It means that there are different mental disorders that, beyond some common characteristics, have little to do with each other.

In the case at hand, depression due to the death of a loved one, cannot be considered to be its own entity as mental alteration, but rather a specification of what has been one of the main triggers that explains how it has emerged.

Thus, grief depression it can be experienced in as many different ways as there are different ways of experiencing depression in general. Despite this, there are a number of general aspects that are usually met. Let's see what they are.

• You may be interested in: "Types of depression: its symptoms and characteristics"

Symptoms

One of the great myths about depression is that it is essentially about a sadness so intense that it causes a lot of psychological pain, enough to significantly damage life or even favor the appearance of suicidal ideas.

Although there are cases in which people with depression feel that way, there are many others who experience it in a totally different way and who do not exactly feel sad. The most characteristic feature of depression, whether due to the death of a loved relative or friend or for other causes, is the inability to feel joy, illusion or in some cases even pleasure, and the lack of initiative and motivation to do the most basic activities.

The inability to feel pleasure, or anhedonia, appears automatically, and has nothing to do with our way of thinking about life or life. existence itself: it is not necessary to be extremely cynical or critical of society and the world to feel it, since its nature is irrational, beyond the limits of reason and language.

The abulia, or lack of initiative, also arises in a similar way. It does not appear because intellectually we do not find reasons to feel motivated by something, but rather that is expressed as a symptom without further ado, without the need for us to have had to reach any conclusion.

• You may be interested in: "Anhedonia: the inability to feel pleasure"

Treatment

Treatment of depression due to the death of a loved one should always be carried out by mental health professionals, who in turn must also carry out a personalized diagnosis. The fact that we feel very bad after the death of a friend or family member does not mean that we can assume that we have depression; we have to wait for what the specialists who handle our case tell us. That said, it's also good to know that in some cases it will be recommended to combine psychotherapy with drug treatment, and in others it won't.

The drugs relieve the symptoms, but a few doses do not make the discomfort go away. Psychological therapy is one that can help us better accept the death of that person and want to reintegrate into a world in which we can no longer see or interact with it. So, the main goal of therapy is acceptance.

How to get this? It is not a battle that we can do alone, and it is not something that depends only on the therapist. You have to let yourself be guided by the professional who carries out the psychotherapy, and work together. For example, part of these tasks have to do with the cognitive restructuring: the revision of our deepest beliefs to discard those that do not adapt to reality and harm us, to replace them with others.

Other tasks will also be indicated whose main objective is not to let us fall into passivity and a lifestyle far from all activity. This is what behavioral activation work consists of, widely used in the treatment of depression.

On the other hand, the role of the family and the close environment of the patient is also essential. Mourning the death of a loved one is much more bearable if you have the support of other people with whom you have a personal and intimate bond.

Bibliographic references:

• Gomez Sancho, M. (2004). The loss of a loved one. Mourning and mourning. Madrid: Aran editions
• McCullough, J. Q. Jr (2003). Treatment for Chronic Depression: Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP). New York: Guilford Press.