What is the difference between depression and situational sadness?
Having a significant brain injury is a life-changing situation. There is appropriately some situational sadness because life has changed with that. As a professional, you have to assess that. If the person with the brain injury continues working in therapy and making goals, then it may not be depression but a very appropriate reaction to a change in their life. However, situational sadness can easily cross over into significant depression if it continues for too long, is really impacting participation in therapy, or working towards the future. If this is the case, you would do a more formal assessment for depression and then evaluate treatment options.
Related Resources
- Depression After Brain Injury: What You Need to Know
- How Common Is Depression After Brain Injury?
- Why Is It So Important to Talk About Emotional and Psychological Recovery After Brain Injury?
- The Process of Adjusting to Life After a Brain Injury
- How Can Depression Affect Recovery from Brain Injury?
- Why Is It So Critical to Treat Depression in People with Brain Injury?
- Why Does Being Active Relieve Depression?
- How Does Ambiguous Loss Impact a Person with a Brain Injury?
About the author: Jesse Fann, MD
Jesse Fann, M.D., M.P.H., is a consultation-liaison psychiatrist in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Washington and an adjunct professor in the UW departments of Rehabilitation Medicine and Epidemiology. His clinical interests include consultation-liaison psychiatry, psychiatric oncology and neuropsychiatry. His research interests include psychiatric epidemiology, health services research, psychiatric oncology and neuropsychiatry.
