What is Dysthymia?

Dysthymia is a chronic type of depression but with less severity than major depressive disorder. It is characterized by a depressed mood for most of the day, for more days than not. Some symptoms include, feelings of hopelessness, low self esteem, poor appetite or overeating, and poor concentration.

What is it like to have Dysthymia?

Common Symptoms Patients' Latest Severity My Current Severity  
Severity
Severe
Moderate
Mild
None
Back pain None Mild Moderate Severe
Dizziness None Mild Moderate Severe
Headaches None Mild Moderate Severe
Hyperventilation None Mild Moderate Severe
Inability to experience pleasure (anhedonia) None Mild Moderate Severe
Lack of motivation None Mild Moderate Severe
Low self esteem None Mild Moderate Severe
Muscle tension None Mild Moderate Severe
Nausea None Mild Moderate Severe
Problems concentrating None Mild Moderate Severe
Stomach pain None Mild Moderate Severe

What do patients take to treat Dysthymia and its symptoms?

Commonly prescribed and frequently used treatments

Treatment name Efficacy Overall rating of side effects # of Evaluations
Bupropion
(Voxra, Voxra, Budeprion SR, Zetron)
38
Venlafaxine
(Odven SBK, Pracet, Zarelis, Venlor XR)
27
Individual Therapy
(Meditation - Reflection, Mentalization Based Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Individual Therapy, Drug Treatment Centers)
24
Citalopram
(APO-Citalopram, Citabax, Mylan Citalopram, Alcytan)
16
Fluoxetine
(Moltoben, Flunil, Actan, Verotina)
15
Sertraline
(Eleva, Lustral, Tolrest, Daxid)
14
Escitalopram
(Loxalate, Seroplex, Es Pramcit, Lexamil)
14
Duloxetine
(Yentreve, Cymbalta)
10

These charts show data from Dysthymia patients' latest treatment evaluations

Who has Dysthymia at PatientsLikeMe?

<20 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70+
Current Age
Distribution of females vs. males
Gender
74% Females
26% Males
Age at first symptom
Age at first symptom # of patients Proportion
0-19 yrs 885
20-29 yrs 248
30-39 yrs 134
40-49 yrs 75
50-59 yrs 28
60-69 yrs 3
70+ yrs 2
Diagnosis status
Diagnosis status # of patients Proportion
Diagnosed 2645
Not Officially Diagnosed 2128

These charts show data from Dysthymia patients who have completed their condition history