Picture this: During appraisal time, another colleague sidelines you and gets promoted. Even though you have been a good and hard-working employee all year round, they get promoted and not you. Do you feel depressed or you just drown your bad mood mood in a glass of beer and music?
Or this, the ambitious mid-term project you worked day and night on did not receive the grades that you had expected. Would you get the end-of-the-world feeling? Or you would just move on resolving to put in harder efforts than your peers the next time round?
Or if you have started out a business of your own after giving it a lot of thought. But fail to find investors for the same.
If your answer was that of not taking the failure to heart, then congratulations! That suggests you have a never-say-die spirit and a very amazing attitude towards life’s challenges! For not everyone has such a temperament about life. There are people like the meek hare from the parable who mistook the earth coming to an end when a small leaf fell on it when it was sleeping. And there are people, who start getting worried at the smallest provocation.
But, but, if you are a person who has the habit of losing their calm easily, getting dejected when things don’t go your way or losing your nerves at the drop of a hat then that could be your slow but steady descent towards depression. 
Studies say that depression, anxiety and overall mental health of a person are linked to the thyroid functioning in a person. Read on to find out about the relation between thyroid and mental health in this article.
What is depression?
Many people mistake depression for the feeling of dejection after a failure or a lost cause. However, there is more to the term than just this much. Feeling down after a particular failure or disappointment is normal. However, it is very important to be able to distinguish between this feeling and the hopelessness that persists and pervades over different aspects of your life for weeks ahead. As that helps you in getting medical help if need be. Plus, checking your thyroid health is also instrumental in understanding in how well your body is functioning.
What are the signs of depression?
Following are the signs and symptoms of depression:
Loss of sleep – Have you lost the mandatory 8 hour shuteye that your body deserves? Do you find yourself drowsy in your work-hours? That are signs that your sleep has reduced. Next, find out the cause behind it. If these connecting dots lead you to a proper reason or cause of concern that could explain this loss of sleep, it may be a sign of depression.
Loss of appetite – If you do not anymore find a bowl of sweets or a plate of your favorite cuisine appealing enough or your favorite dishes do not any longer uplift your mood, it is a red flag. It is a sign that you are letting the tensions in your life go to your head. Could be a sign of depression.
Suicidal tendencies – Losing interest from anything and everything you once liked is the most telling sign of depression setting in. Also losing the interest in living in general and that you are no good for your family and loved ones anymore makes depressed people inch towards suicide.
Loss of confidence – Loss of confidence, self-esteem and self worth are indicators of the person suffering from depression.
Loss of interest from day-to-day activities – People suffering from depression do not have any interest in day-to-day activities which they otherwise did happily.
Weight loss – losing abnormal amount of weight without significant efforts such as that of diet control or exercising is another sign of depression. Since weight loss has happened because of undue stress or worrying it is high-time you discussed this with your doctor.
Lack of social interaction – Have you found yourself consciously drifting away from your close friends and loved ones? Do you find their presence in your life as a burden and not a comforting factor?? Also, do you find yourself canceling on meeting your friends who have been your support system, multiple times? There is a fine line that separates me-time to always wanting to being alone. If any of these points apply to you, then you may need help.
What are the signs of an overactive or under-active thyroid?
The thyroid gland in our body produces thyroxine and trioodoththyronine. These glands are responsible for proper metabolism, growth and development of the body and also influences brain activity patterns. This gland is situated in the frontal region of our throat. When thyroid functioning is affected, the chemical messengers in the brain suffer too causing mental disorders, anxiety and depression. The pattern of thyroid hormones secretion causes hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism. Which in turn causes the below listed symptoms your body shows you.
Hyperthyroidism – When thyroid hormones are produced in excess of normal by the thyroid gland, the condition is termed as hyperthyroidism. Symptoms of the same include – unexplained weight loss, insomnia, increased appetite, lack of ability to focus on a single thing and mood swings among other tell-tale signs.
Hypothyroidism – In this condition, lack of thyroid hormones production causes different symptoms like sudden weight gain, feeling of tiredness, fatigue, depression, dry skin, reduced memory span and many other signs.
If you notice these and other conditions like an increased cholesterol level, hair fall that is starkly noticeable are indicators that there is an underlying problem in your thyroid that needs to be addressed. People suffering from thyroid – either under-active or overactive are likely to become absent-minded, moody, highly happy or down in the dumps without any pronounced reasons. All this only because of improperly functioning thyroids! The doctor may check your thyroid levels through T3, T4 and TSH tests.
It is better to discuss these symptoms with your physician who may refer you to an endocrinologist or a psychiatrist for further treatment.
