-Charu Chauhan
Depression is one of the biggest public health challenges because of its high incidence. Research worldwide, including in India, suggests that at least one in five women and one in 10 men suffers from major depressive disorder at some time in their lifetime. In my opinion depression is a widely underrated and misunderstood disease especially amongst young people. So often it can be misconstrued or written off as having the blues, teen angst, being emo or just being sad. This often means that many people, especially teenagers, battle it in silence and often do not seek the help they need, for fear of the social stigma being depressed comes with or of being labelled “different”.
Over the years, the struggle with depression has cost people family, friends, health, and happiness. For the victim, depression means every day can be a literal life or death situation, because of this, it is often difficult to find positive outlets that create motivation or bring enjoyment.
If you are fighting depression and suicidal thoughts, you probably feel alone right now. You probably feel scared, everything probably seems confusing and it probably seems like there is no hope of recovery. Maybe you feel lost, as if you don’t know who you are or where you fit in the world. There’s probably a part of you that feels angry at the illness and maybe even at yourself. Those same thoughts run through the head of all depression patients every time the illness attacks. Nobody can really understand the series of events that has led to you feeling the way you do, but for whatever reason, right now you are struggling. The thought of living each day is too hard, the idea of waking up tomorrow and going through it all again seems unbearable. There have been times where there seemed to be no escape, where suicide seemed the only option left, but you’re still here. You’re still alive, you’re still fighting, and you’re still trying to make things better. Many people haven’t had the strength that you have shown just to still be here, but you have. It feels too much sometimes, and sometimes it feels like you can’t keep going, but you have, despite the darkness invading your mind. Listen to me: You’ve made it to today. You should be incredibly proud of that.
If there’s one thing you need to know, it’s that you are not alone. You are never alone. You may think you are, but it’s the illness telling you that, and it is lying to you. The truth is there are millions of us, all suffering variants of the same illness. The nature of that illness makes it harder to talk about it, but when we do, we strike the first blow to the demon of depression. It’s understandable why you feel you can’t talk to people. There’s still a stigma around depression and suicide that makes you scared of being judged, of friends, family and work colleagues treating you differently, of people never seeing past the illness. It’s understandable, but that stigma is being broken down further every day.
Doctors say families and friends can help by noticing any sudden change in appetite, hobbies or sleeping patterns. If a person stops doing what he or she previously liked doing, like an avid reader being unable to read any more, it could be a sign of depression. Depression can bring about subtle changes ever so slowly that many people miss it until much later. In fact, some people trace depression back to their childhood, saying they always felt low as far as they can remember.
It is time to make it easier on yourself. Get help. Talk to someone. Whether you talk to a doctor, a family member, a friend or even an anonymous stranger on the internet, stop trying to do this alone. You have been strong enough for long enough. It is time to allow someone else to share the strain and help you through. The support is there, but you have to let people know that you need it. There are people that do care, but you have to give them a chance to. You have to let them in. We may feel lonely, but we are never alone. You can get better. You will get better. If you had the flu, you’d go to the doctors. Please remember that depression is another illness, albeit a much scarier one. That may seem obvious, but to many people it isn’t. Depression isn’t a mood; you aren’t going to “snap out of it”. It could take a long time to get better. You will have bad days. You may start to get better, and then regress. But you can overcome this. You will overcome this. One day, you will look back on this time and realise just how amazing you are right now, for continuing to fight, for continuing to try, for continuing to breathe. Because that is all you have to do. Just keep breathing.
Stop allowing the illness make you feel ashamed, or embarrassed. You have nothing to be ashamed of. You’re not a freak, or a drama queen, or a weirdo, or a lunatic, or a psychopath, or any of the other terms that ignorant people use.
SIGNS OF DEPRESSION:
American National Institute of Mental Health lists following as symptoms of depression:
- Persistent sad, anxious or empty mood.
- Feeling of hopelessness, pessimism, guilt or worthlessness.
- Loss of interest in hobbies or activities, once pleasurable.
- Decreased energy. Fatigue.
- Difficulty concentrating, remembering and making decisions.
- Difficulty sleeping or oversleeping.
- Appetite and/or weight changes.
- Suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts.
- Persistent headaches, cramps or digestive problems.
