9 Surprising Causes of Depression That Could Affect Anyone ...

By Lauren

Long term unemployment, grief, financial stress, and trauma are all well-known causes of depression. But what if none of them apply to you? What other trigger can you look to when you’re suffering depression and don’t know why?

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1

Seasonal Allergies

Do spring allergies always have your nose running and your eyes watering? New studies have suggested that seasonal allergies can lead to depression. Allergies have serious physical effects, such as sleepless nights, fatigue, congestion, or headaches, and the physical toll makes a person more vulnerable to depression than people without allergies.

2

Smoking

Your habit of smoking may cause depression. It's often difficult to determine whether smoking comes first or depression because some people start smoking when they are depressed, while others smoke a lot and get depressed. Whatever the case, you should quit smoking because nicotine affects neurotransmitter activity and alters the levels of serotonin and dopamine that may have something to do with depression.

3

Thyroid Disease

The thyroid gland in the neck produces thyroid hormone that acts as a neurotransmitter and controls serotonin levels. A thyroid disease such as hypothyroidism may affect the production of thyroid hormone, which in turn will trigger the onset of depression and other symptoms, such as constipation, cold sensitivity, and fatigue.

4

Summer Depression

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) has its connections with winter blues, and it causes problems for about 5% of Americans. This form of depression also hits many people in the summer because the body finds it difficult to adjust to new seasons with different temperatures. This may cause imbalances in brain chemistry and affect neurotransmitter activity, which may lead to depression.

5

Poor Sleep Habits

Sleep deprivation most often leads to irritability, but it may be an underlying cause of depression. The research has shown that sleep deprivation affects your brain activity, robbing you of time your brain cells need to replenish. This impairs brain function and can lead to depression.

Famous Quotes

Men in general judge more from appearances than from reality. All men have eyes, but few have the gift of penetration.

Niccolò Machiavelli
6

You Don’t Eat Fish

Among many other surprising causes of depression is lack of fish in the diet. It is connected to the fact that fish will have loads of omega-3 fatty acids that the body needs to regulate neurotransmitters like serotonin. Not eating enough fish is more likely to cause depression in women than in men.

7

Your Location

Many studies have confirmed that people living in urban areas are at a greater risk of developing depression; in fact, you have a 39% higher risk of mood disorder if you're an urban dweller as compared to those in rural regions. It is due to this particular reason that depression rates are not the same in countries and states. Even altitude may affect your brain activity, which is the reason why suicide risk increases with altitude.

8

Facebook Love

While a romantic relationship and breakup over Facebook will most definitely lead to depression, you may find yourself in trouble simply because you're spending too much time in front of your PC. A number of studies have confirmed that excessive interaction over social-networking sites may lead to depression in preteens and teens. Facebook overload may make it difficult for you to maintain real-life human interaction. You may even have an unrealistic view of how things work in the world, which in turn will lead to "Facebook depression".

9

Birth Control Pills

Oral contraceptives can have side effects: they contain a type of progesterone that can cause depression in some women. The real reason why these pills lead to depression is still unknown, as not every woman who's on contraceptives faces the problem.

Have you been surprised by any of these things that can trigger depression?

Feedback Junction

Where Thoughts and Opinions Converge

Pretty sure I got 5 and 8..I find myself going on facebook and seeing that everybody's having amazing lives & comparing my own life to theirs because my life has been pretty boring lately. Feels like "social life depression" for me too since I only have one real friend anymore :(

I'm pretty happy with my life atm, but I could say I have 'social life depression' cause I haven't seen many friends for months and months. I'm trying to make better friends with a new friend from last year, but feels like the friends I've known for so long don't get back to me when I message them :/

It gets me wondering... Wouldn't life be a lot easier without Facebook?

@isabella... Hang in there! Who needs more than 1 or 2 friends anyway?? Having A friend to count on is better than 5 you can't!

I refuse to do Facebook and life still pissed me off, people are selfish, out for their own gain and life is pretty much cutthroat, it's a battle everyday, without trauma, so that itself can make you feel pretty crap

Having a baby?...postpartum depression

I have 3&4 lately I've been feeling depressed and didn't want to go outside because it's getting warmer

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