Depression is a heavy word that attacks the inner soul of a person. It affects anyone despite the race, skin color, nationality, gender or status differences. Based on the World Health Data, there are already more than 300 individuals who are suffering from depression. It is one of the main mental disorders that causes almost 90 percent of suicide cases. Suicide issues keep on increasing over time. The number of death increased for about 60% since the last 45 yrs. until the present. It is heartbreaking to observe that thousands of people are cutting their own life yet there are those who desire to have longer life yet failed to have it.
Depression
Depression (clinical depression or depressive disorder) is a feeling of anxiety, deep loneliness or pain that decreases someone’s self-worth or self-esteem and affects someone’s normal daily routine. It is significant to have a total understanding about this mental disease to prevent and protect ourselves having it. Moreover, this will give us idea on how to help and understand friends and family who are victims of depression. Victims need guidance and support for them to fight the feeling of vulnerability.
Possible Cause of Depression
Causes of depression differs from every individual. Some of the causes are genetic inheritance and stress
Genetic Inheritance
When a parent or a grandparent suffered from depression, then there is a possibility that their children are at risk of depression.
Stress
We tend to suffer from stress due to some factors such as diseases, poor time management skills, personal, financial or social problems. Thus, it is significant to discipline ourselves in managing our time, choosing our diet and our daily activities.
Symptoms of Depression
Symptoms of depression varied from an individual to another. There are those who keep on hiding the deep loneliness, loss of self-worth and other negativity that they are feeling because they are afraid of criticism or they thought it is a normal feeling. The following are the factors identified by a National Institute of Mental Health. If it happened that you are encountering the following symptoms, ask help. Don't wait that the only choice you think you have is to loss your life rather than living without any reason.
Deep Loneliness
Being lonely in a short period is normal yet being miserable most of the time to the point that it affects your work, studies, daily routines, and even your relationship with others is already strange.
Loss of Self-worth or Self Confidence
You know you are having this symptom when you can’t longer feel your importance in the society you are in. As a result, you start to exclude yourself from the society, even avoiding your love ones and the people around you. This causes you to think of ending your life.
Pessimism
Negativity affects your insights, thus causing you to see the negative consequences of a possible action you think of doing. This also affects your decision-making skill.
Sleeping Habits
This is the repetitive or monotonous inability to sleep at night, or it is the reverse, which is oversleeping.
Alteration of Diets
You found yourself either eating too much or avoiding foods in a repetitive manner.
Treating Depression
There are those who attempt to handle their own depression; however, most failed to fight it that leads them to develop more serious mental illnesses, even killing themselves. If you observed symptoms of depression, don’t hesitate to ask help by visiting a professional psychiatrist or health care provider. They will help you evaluate your level of depression, gives you medicine or even recommend psychotherapy or brain stimulation therapy.
Medicines
Antidepressants or the drugs recommended by doctors for depressed clients in order to balance chemical reactions, related to mood, in their brain. However, it is important to consult a doctor before taking it because of its side effects. Doctors are monitoring those who are taking this medicine for the first time because it could create a feeling of agitation to an individual and might cause that person to attempt suicide. Example of antidepressants are Imipramine, Desipramine and Nortriptyline.
Psychotherapy
This is sometimes called “talk therapy” wherein a licensed psychiatrist or a health care provider communicates with the depressed patient about his/her emotion, challenges or problems that contributes in his/her condition. Moreover, this is where the patient learns various ways of fighting his/her depression.
Brain Stimulation Therapy
Electroconvulsive therapy is the longest and most effective brain stimulation therapy so far. It is a method of using electricity to directly activate the brain. This is only used when medicine and psychotherapy are ineffective.
Other people could help you combat your depression but you are the main actor in your own story so you should also help yourself. As Charles Bukowski stated “Nobody can save you but yourself”. As you are having medication or psychotherapy, start organizing you daily activities and continue doing your passion you used to do. Begin recovering what you have lost and surround yourself with good friends and positivity!