By David Joel Miller, MS, Licensed Therapist & Licensed Counselor.

Depression.
Photo courtesy of Pixabay.com

Dysthymic Disorder, a forgotten Mood Disorder.

Mood disorders are separated into two groups, Depressive Disorders, and Bipolar Disorders.

Major Depressive Disorder gets all the press while it’s craftier and more insidious cousin Dysthymia gets almost none.

In Dysthymia the person feels pessimistic and “down in the dumps” but the condition is not yet severe enough to be recognized as full-fledged Major Depressive Disorder. In children, this disorder is likely to be missed or to be misdiagnosed as a learning disability, attention problem, or poor behavior.

In adults, we call these people pessimists or grumpy old men. People often have been suffering from dysthymia for so long they come to believe this is simply the way they are. They think the sadness is a part of their personality, and don’t know that dysthymia is a treatable condition. They can’t imagine feeling happy as others do.

Diagnosable Dysthymia is a long-term overall sadness that interferes with having a happy life. As a Cognitive Behavioral Therapist, I am sure a faulty belief system either creates or perpetuates this disorder.

Dysthymia is not an occasional “BAD HAIR DAY.’ It involves someone who, while not always depressed, is sad and down more of the days each week than not. It is also not just a rough patch in the road. We may all have weeks or even months of tough times that make us sad. People with Dysthymia have at least two straight years of mostly sad, depressed days but somehow they keep trudging on. If they would just give in and stop trying they might get the diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder.

For kids, we reduce the two-year requirement to one year, if the child can avoid the “ADHD, heavy meds, hits someone and become a bad kid” trap.  In kids, the mood is more likely to be irritable all the time than obviously sad or depressed. Kids show pain by being irritable. They may also become pessimistic and stop trying to complete their work. Their grades drop and their sad mood leads to missed school days and few friends.

This is a chronic condition and without treatment, it rarely goes away. About half the time Dysthymia deepens and becomes Major Depressive Disorder. The combination of both is sometimes referred to as Double Depression and even when the Major depression lifts the person may still have the overall sad mood of dysthymia. This makes it important that they get treated not just for the Major Depression but for the Dysthymia also.

Just being down, depressed, or irritable for two years is not enough to get you this diagnosis. This disorder will also probably not get you disability, as people with Dysthymia keep trying and are able to go to school or work even when they hate life and are chronically unhappy.

People with Dysthymia will also have features similar to Major Depressive Disorder in being rather Melancholy or having atypical symptoms. They either eat-and-sleep like bears hibernating for the winter or they can’t eat and can’t sleep.

One common characteristic of people who have dysthymia is low self-esteem. They don’t have much self-confidence and they don’t think they can accomplish much; as a result, they give up trying. This can be the result of a difficult childhood, bullying, or simply a lack of having had the experience of succeeding at little things in life.

People with dysthymia are often hypercritical of themselves, others, and the world in general. They may complain a lot and have difficulty having fun. This leads to low productivity and a lack of positive relationships with others.

People who failed a lot or who were never told that what they did was good enough are prone to Dysthymia. Lack of praise was supposed to make for more accomplishment. Some parents ask me why they should praise a child just for doing what they should be doing anyway? The answer is that without praise kids begin to think that no matter what they do, or how hard they try, it will never be good enough. Eventually, they stop trying.

People with Dysthymia don’t get much pleasure out of life. As a result, they avoid doing anything that might be stressful or involve a risk of failure. They become increasingly sad and withdrawn. They find it difficult to make decisions and to start or finish projects. No use in trying if “nothing is going to turn out all right anyway.”

This may be hard to spot, as people with dysthymia avoid social situations and lack of social support is a factor in perpetuating dysthymia. It is hard to make new friends when you are sad, feel bad about yourself, and don’t have a belief in your ability to succeed.

Families tend to share their mental illnesses. If one member of the family has depression, major or minor, then other members of that same family may have dysthymia. This suggests that there is either a hereditary risk factor for Dysthymia or an environmental risk factor. Families provide both.

Dysthymia is extremely common among alcoholics and substance abusers. People who are sad a lot are more likely to abuse substances and people who abuse substances have plenty of reasons to be sad. What brings these people to treatment is an out of control addiction or when the dysthymia becomes Major Depressive Disorder. Many people with Dysthymia have psychical illnesses and conditions also.

Dysthymia frequently starts in childhood and affects both functioning and development. It is important for a child’s healthy development that they know it is possible to succeed and achieve. Having good, positive, and close friends is also an antidote.

The elderly are at increased risk to develop Dysthymia as they lose family and friends, become more isolated, and may have difficulty providing self-care. Changes in appetite, fatigue, sleeping problems, and isolation can all be mistaken for the usual results of aging instead of being recognized as symptoms of Dysthymia or depression in the elderly.

Treatment for Dysthymia is possible and has been shown to be highly effective. Group counseling and support groups are helpful. Individual therapy and medication are useful, though medication appears to be less effective with Dysthymia than with Major Depressive Disorder.

Because of the chronic nature of Dysthymia and the high risk, this will turn into Major Depressive Disorder early treatment is important.

Related articles: Mood Disorders, Depressive Disorders,

Major Depressive Disorder, Bipolar Disorder or Depression?, Bipolar or moody?, Am I Bipolar?, Hyperthymia, Are you hyperthymic? 

Staying connected with David Joel Miller

Seven David Joel Miller Books are available now!

My newest book is now available. It was my opportunity to try on a new genre. I’ve been working on this book for several years, but now seem like the right time to publish it.

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