Brain Diseases

Your brain is the control center of your body. It controls your thoughts, memory, speech, and movement. It regulates the function of many organs. It's part of your nervous system, which also includes your spinal cord and peripheral nerves. The nervous system sends signals between your brain and the rest of the body. Your nerves take in information from your senses and send it to the brain to be processed. Your brain and nerves also communicate to help you move and to control your body's functions.

When the brain is healthy, it works quickly and automatically. But when you have a brain disease, it may affect how well you can function and do your daily activities. Some common brain diseases include:

• Brain tumors, which can press on nerves and affect brain function.
• Degenerative nerve diseases, which can affect many of your body's activities, such as balance, movement, talking, breathing, and heart function. Types include Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.
• Encephalitis (inflammation in the brain), which can lead to problems such as vision loss, weakness, and paralysis.
• Genetic brain disorders, which are caused by changes in genes (also called variants or mutations). These disorders can affect the development and function of the brain.
• Strokes, which can cause a loss of brain cells and can affect your ability to think clearly.
• Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), which can affect brain function. They may range from mild to severe. The effects of a TBI may be temporary or permanent.

The symptoms of brain diseases vary widely, depending on the specific problem. In some cases, damage is permanent. In other cases, treatments such as surgery, medicines, or therapies such as physical, occupational, and speech therapies, may cure the disease or improve the symptoms.

Caregivers

A caregiver gives care to someone who needs help taking care of themselves. The person who needs help may be a child, an adult, or an older adult. They may need help because of an injury or disability. Or they may have a chronic illness such as Alzheimer's disease or cancer.

Some caregivers are informal caregivers. They are usually family members or friends. Other caregivers are paid professionals. Caregivers may give care at home or in a hospital or other health care setting. Sometimes they are caregiving from a distance. The types of tasks that caregivers do may include:

• Helping with daily tasks like bathing, eating, or taking medicine
• Doing housework and cooking
• Running errands such as shopping for food and clothes
• Driving the person to appointments
• Providing company and emotional support
• Arranging activities and medical care
• Making health and financial decisions

Caregiving can be rewarding. It may help to strengthen connections to a loved one. You may feel fulfillment from helping someone else. But caregiving may also be stressful and sometimes even overwhelming. You may be "on call" for 24 hours a day. You may also be working outside the home and taking care of children. So you need to make sure that you are not ignoring your own needs. You have to take care of your own physical and mental health as well. Because when you feel better, you can take better care of your loved one. It will also be easier to focus on the rewards of caregiving.

Dept. of Health and Human Services Office on Women's Health

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is a rare, degenerative brain disorder. Symptoms usually start around age 60. Memory problems, behavior changes, vision problems, and poor muscle coordination progress quickly to dementia, coma, and death. Most patients die within a year.

The three main categories of CJD are :

• Sporadic CJD, which occurs for no known reason
• Hereditary CJD, which runs in families
• Acquired CJD, which occurs from contact with infected tissue, usually during a medical procedure

Cattle can get a disease related to CJD called bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or "mad cow disease." There is concern that people can get a variant of CJD from eating beef from an infected animal, but there is no direct proof to support this.

NIH: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Degenerative Nerve Diseases

Degenerative nerve diseases affect many of your body's activities, such as balance, movement, talking, breathing, and heart function. Many of these diseases are genetic. Sometimes the cause is a medical condition such as alcoholism, a tumor, or a stroke. Other causes may include toxins, chemicals, and viruses. Sometimes the cause is unknown.

Degenerative nerve diseases include:

• Alzheimer's disease
• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
• Friedreich ataxia
• Huntington's disease
• Lewy body disease
• Parkinson's disease
• Spinal muscular atrophy

Degenerative nerve diseases can be serious or life-threatening. It depends on the type. Most of them have no cure. Treatments may help improve symptoms, relieve pain, and increase mobility.

Depression

What is depression?

Depression is more than a feeling of being sad or irritable for a few days. It's a serious mood disorder. As one of the most common mental disorders in the United States, depression can affect how you think, feel, and your everyday life. You may not know why you feel this way, but even basic daily activities such as sleeping, eating, or working may become difficult. Depression often needs long-term treatment but getting help at the earliest sign of a problem can help manage your symptoms.

What are the different types of depression?

The most common types of depression are major depression and persistent depressive disorder.

• Major depression symptoms include a depressed mood or a loss of interest. Symptoms affect your daily activities and last for at least two weeks.
• Persistent depressive disorder (also called dysthymia or dysthymic disorder) has less severe depressive symptoms, but they last longer, usually for at least two years.

Other types of depression can include:

• Seasonal affective disorder comes and goes with the seasons. It usually starts in late fall and early winter and goes away during the spring and summer.
• Bipolar disorder is sometimes called manic depression. This mood disorder can cause intense mood swings.
• Depression with symptoms of psychosis is a severe form of depression that also has delusions (false beliefs) or hallucinations (seeing, hearing, or feeling something that isn't there).

What causes depression?

There are a variety of things that may cause depression, including genetic, biological, environmental, and psychological factors. Depression can happen at any age and can affect anyone, but it's more common in women. This is often due to the physical and hormonal changes that women have during menstruation, pregnancy, the postpartum period, and menopause. Other mental disorders or chronic medical conditions such as diabetes, cancer, or heart disease may occur with depression. This may make the chronic condition or depression worse.

In some cases, there is no clear cause for depression.

Who is at risk of depression?

You may be at a higher risk of depression if you have a close relative who has it or another mental health disorder. Going through trauma or stressful life events may raise your risk even more.

What are the symptoms of depression?

Depression doesn't look the same on everyone. The type and number of symptoms of depression can vary and don't always appear like sadness. Depression may affect you differently based on your:

• Age. The symptoms of depression may be different in a child, who may appear more irritable than sad. Teens may act out or have excessive sleepiness. The symptoms for an older adult may not be as obvious as other age groups.
• Sex. Men often show symptoms and coping behaviors differently than women. Rather than sad, men may appear angry or irritable.
• Medical conditions. Some medicines and medical conditions may cause symptoms that look like depression. Chronic conditions may make depression worse.

Symptoms of depression are ongoing and affect your day-to-day life. They can include:

• Feeling sad or "empty"
• Losing interest in favorite activities
• Overeating, or not wanting to eat at all
• Sleeping too much, or not enough
• Feeling very tired
• Feeling hopeless, irritable, anxious, or guilty
• Having aches and pains, headaches, cramps, or digestive problems
• Having thoughts of death or suicide
• Changing moods or behaviors
• Increasing use of alcohol or drugs
• Isolating from family and friends

How is depression diagnosed?

If you think you have depression, talk to your health care provider or a mental health provider. To be diagnosed with depression, your provider may use many tools:

• A medical history will include asking about your symptoms and family history. To be diagnosed with depression, your symptoms must occur most of the day, nearly every day, for at least two weeks. One of the symptoms must be a depressed mood or a loss of interest in most activities.
• Medical tests may be done to rule out other medical conditions. Certain medicines and medical conditions (such as viruses or thyroid disorders) may cause symptoms like depression.
• A physical exam to make sure another issue isn't causing your symptoms.
• A mental health evaluation by your provider or a mental health provider.

What are the treatments for depression?

Depression may need long-term treatment. Most treatments include medicines and/or psychotherapy (talk therapy):

• Medicines such as antidepressants may help control your symptoms. You may need to try several medicines to find which works best for you. Medicine may take time to work and can have side effects. Don't stop taking your medicine without first talking with your provider. Contact your provider if you have any concerns about side effects from the medicine.
• Psychotherapy (talk therapy) under the care of a mental health provider can help you recognize and change troubling emotions, thoughts, and behaviors. This may be done one-on-one or in a group setting. It can give you and your family support, education, skills, and coping strategies.
• Light therapy has been shown to be effective for seasonal affective disorder (SAD).
• Other treatments options may be considered if treatment isn't working or if depression is severe. These may include:
  • Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a brain stimulation procedure that uses a mild electric current when you are under general anesthesia. ECT is most often used for severe depression that is not getting better with other treatments.
  • Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a brain stimulation procedure that uses magnetic waves to relieve depression. It's not as powerful as ECT, but with rTMS, you don't need anesthesia. It also has a low risk of negative effects on your memory and thinking.

Can depression be prevented?

Most cases of depression can't be prevented, but healthy lifestyle changes can have long-term benefits for your mental health. These can include:

• Getting regular exercise
• Having a consistent sleep schedule
• Controlling stress

If you, or someone you love is depressed, see your provider or a mental health provider. It's important to get treatment at the earliest sign of a problem.

If you or someone you know has thoughts of hurting themselves or attempting suicide, get help right away. If it is an emergency, dial 911.

NIH: National Institute of Mental Health