Every gathering is associated with challenges that affect human lives and well-being. To most weak minds; these challenges can dwell in their minds until it affect health and the feature. Not only their own but family, friends and community.
The most common sickness associated with these is depression; which everyone must overcome and help the “over emotional” ones to outgrow.
Depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. It affects how you feel, think and behave and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems.
People experience depression in different ways. It may interfere with the daily work, resulting in lost time and lower productivity. It can also influence relationships, some chronic health conditions and filings as if it is not worth living.
Health Conditions that can get affected due to depression include: asthma, cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, arthritis, obesity etc.
It’s important to realize that feeling “down at times” is a normal part of life. Sad and upsetting events happen to everyone. But if you’re feeling down or hopeless on a regular basis, you could be dealing with depression.
Not everyone with depression will experience the same symptoms. It can vary in severity, rate of occurrence and duration.
The following signs and symptoms occurring nearly every day for at least 2 weeks may be living with depression:
- feeling sad, anxious or “empty”
- feeling hopeless, worthless, and pessimistic
- crying a lot
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- feeling bothered, annoyed, or angry
- loss of interest in hobbies and interests you once enjoyed
- decreased energy or fatigue
- concentration problem, remembering, or making decisions
- moving or talking more slowly
- difficulty sleeping, early morning awakening, or oversleeping
- appetite or weight changes
- chronic physical pain with no clear cause that does not get better with treatment (headaches, aches or pains, cramps)
- thoughts of death, suicide, self-harm, or suicide attempts
The symptoms of depression can be felt differently among males, females, teens, and children.
Males may experience symptoms related to their:
- mood, such as anger, aggressiveness, irritability, anxiousness, or restlessness
- emotional well-being, such as feeling empty, sad, or hopeless
- behavior, such as loss of interest, no longer finding pleasure in favorite activities, feeling tired easily, thoughts of suicide, drinking excessively, using drugs, or engaging in high-risk activities
- sexual interest, such as reduced sexual desire or lack of sexual performance
- cognitive abilities, such as inability to concentrate, difficulty completing tasks, or delayed responses during conversations
- sleep patterns, such as insomnia, restless sleep, excessive sleepiness, or not sleeping through the night
- physical well-being, such as fatigue, pains, headache, or digestive problems
Females may experience symptoms related to their:
- mood, such as irritability
- emotional well-being, such as feeling sad or empty, anxious, or hopeless
- behavior, such as loss of interest in activities, withdrawing from social engagements, or thoughts of suicide
- cognitive abilities, such as thinking or talking more slowly
- sleep patterns, such as difficulty sleeping through the night, waking early, or sleeping too much
- physical well-being, such as decreased energy, greater fatigue, changes in appetite, weight changes, aches, pain, headaches, or increased cramps
Children may experience in relation to their:
- mood, such as irritability, anger ,rapid shift in mood , or crying
- emotional well-being, such as feelings of incompetence (e.g., “I can’t do anything right”) or despair, crying, or intense sadness
- behavior, such as getting into trouble at school or refusing to go to school, avoiding friends or siblings, thoughts of death or suicide, or self harm.
- cognitive abilities, such as difficulty concentrating, decline in school performance, or changes in grades
- sleep patterns, such as difficulty sleeping or sleeping too much
- physical well-being, such as loss of energy, digestive problems, changes in appetite, or weight loss or gain
The causes of depression can be grouped into biological and circumstantial.
The treatment also could be medical, lifestyle therapies or both. However, while depression is generally considered unpreventable, and hard to recognize its causes, an observant close associate can know when it’s setting into a life.
Often times the affected may be reluctant to accept the development of depression, the close associate is suppose to help to overcome it before it degenerate. Notice that in third world countries; depression is always equal to madness.
Every depressed person initially requires psychotherapy. That’s why associates need to arrange for councilors and allow the experts as soon as the sick understand the situation.
Apart from counseling by the experts, these few steps may also be useful: regular exercise, more sleep reducing stress, building strong relationship with others and maintaining treatment.
