Depression and HIV

October 2003     View PDF     En español
Reprinted from www.aidsmeds.com, US

In the language of clinical psychology, depression is a syndrome, a cluster of emotional, physical and behavioral symptoms characterized by sadness, low self esteem, loss of pleasure, and, sometimes, difficulty functioning. If these problems persist over a period of time, cause real suffering, and interfere with the business and pleasure of daily life, you may have a clinical depression.

In everyday conversation, people say they are depressed when they are feeling unhappy, down, blue, sad, or hopeless. Almost everyone has experienced these emotions, and if you have HIV disease, you may have reason to be anxious or depressed at times. These feelings are just one part of everyday life for most people.

However, if the feelings are overwhelming or persistent, you may benefit from psychological evaluation and treatment. Depression of this type can be effectively reduced or even eliminated with (often relatively simple) treatment. Professional intervention in serious depression can reduce suffering and improve the quality of life.