Depression – let’s talk

The World Health Organisation (WHO) celebrated World Health Day on 7 April this year, like every year since 1950, as a global health awareness day to draw worldwide attention to a subject of paramount importance

Taboo is a subject or practice that is widely forbidden to be discussed in public as per social or religious customs. These prohibited topics include sex education, which is deemed inappropriate to be taught at any level and results in lack of family planning and the consequent overpopulation, increasing incidents of rape that always surprisingly stigmatise victims for their entire lives, women health problems, the discussion of which is snubbed to such an extent that they cannot even buy sanitary napkins without feeling embarrassed for purchasing them in first place, and many more similar matters that somehow tend to offend the masses only God knows how and why.

You may be charged of obscenity and accused of climbing the ladder of ill-founded popularity if you bring such subjects into public notice, but that would still be more acceptable than the under-mentioned case. Imagine when you talk about a disease and people do not even acknowledge it. No matter how valid your claims are and how many signs and symptoms you enlist before them, if they do not recognise it as a disorder then it is does not exist at all.

But if it is not one thing, it is the other. People will frown upon you no matter what, whether you openly discuss a taboo or tell people about a mental disorder of yours. There is no use of belabouring the axiomatic co-functioning of body and soul, both of which constitute a living entity and either of which can suffer disorders and errs, because that would be nothing more than a plain banality for all societies. No human has ever been successful in breaking away from the bastions which are beleaguered by our assiduous urge to opine. You will befrowned upon! Since there is no escaping from the haws and hayes, let us talk about depression because believe me when I say that half the problem is solved when you talk about it.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) celebrated World Health Day on 7 April this year, like every year since 1950, as a global health awareness day to draw worldwide attention to a subject of paramount importance. This year’s theme was “Depression: Let’s talk” and aimed to mobilising action on depression, a condition that affects people of all ages, genders and professions. The stigma associated with the illness prevents people from seeking help who then often resort to causing self-inflicted injury and committing suicide.

Mental disorders that commonly exist in the human population (we do not know much about animals!) are either depressive or anxiety disorders. As their names imply, both affect the mood and feelings of the affected persons but vary in the range of symptoms in terms of duration and severity. Surprisingly, these disorders are diagnosable through distinct feelings of stress, fear, or sadness; yet, approximately 322 million human inhabitants of this planet are suffering from depression alone, mostly silently and undiagnosed. The even more disturbing part is that the number of persons with common mental disorders is continuously hiking up globally, particularly in low-income countries, which indicates the role of unemployment, poverty, physical illnesses, drug abuse, and political and social unrest as contributing factors.

For a common man to realise that he is not a foolishly crazy crackpot but actually a sufferer of depression, he must know what depression really is. It is a mental state qualified by a pessimistic sense of inadequacy and despondent lack of activity. It is so unfortunate, however, that the highly prevalent psychological disorder is the one being taken for granted the most. We laugh off the idea of someone being a patient of depression and reduce the importance of its diagnosis to zero as if the resultant mood swings are nothing but a collection of momentary failures to maintain a sane and composed state of mind. It is high time that we acknowledge depression as a serious mood disorder.

Sometimes the solution lies not in keeping mouth shut but in yelling and blurting out everything that has been burning you from the inside and killing you slowly day by day

Depression is a term used for a myriad of depressive disorders which are characterised by feelings of guilt or lower self-worth, tiredness, poor concentration, disturbed sleep, loss of appetite, loss of interest or pleasure, and subsequent sadness. While recurrent as well as enduring depression substantially impairs an affected individual’s ability to function at school or workplace or even during household chores, as connoted by the aforementioned signs and symptoms, long-lasting spells of depression can lead to self-annihilation.

Well, that is not all about depression. Psychopathologists identify at least two main sub-categories of depressive disorders, namely major depressive disorder (MDD) and dysthymia. MDD, alias depressive episode, depending on the severity of symptoms, can be categorised as mild, moderate, or severe. It can be diagnosed after the occurrence of a single episode which can then become recurrent. Depression sans mania, i.e. excessive response, is said to be suffering from unipolar depression because the mood does not climb to the higher, violent pole as in the case of bipolar disorder and by and large remains at the bottom pole. Such are the patients who are at increased risk for suicide because masses may declare an aggressive person a lunatic but can never eye a stony-faced, humourless individual as a psychological patient. Dysthymia is a little different from MDD in that the aforementioned symptoms do not tend to last longer than a couple of years.

I want to clarify for all those who are reading this article and asking under their breath “Are these the only types?” that no, there are many. Double (dysthymia lasting for at least two years and punctuated by depressive episodes), postpartum (intense depression experienced by 10-15pc women after giving birth), atypical (mood reactivity and exceptional positivity with increased appetite and excessive sleep), catatonic (disturbances of motor behaviour causing immobility or bizarre movements), seasonal or winter (depressive episodes on the arrival of or during winter and autumn seasons), melancholic (loss of pleasure and failure of reactivity to any gratifying stimulus), and psychotic (witnessing delusions and hallucinations) are just a few among many other categories.

A worrisome piece of statistics is the alarming figure of 788,000 which denotes the number of people who committed suicide in the year 2015 alone, according to WHO Global Health Estimates. It was found to be the second leading cause of death among 15-29-year olds globally. Do we still need a well-warranted and valid reason to act before it is too late?

We all have numerous concerns, fears and tales buried deep in our hearts because either we are afraid of being judged by others, or we simply do not have reliable acquaintance. Social strata, financial concerns and excessive globalisation are leading causes among many others of drifting humans apart because people tend to trust easily and are, subsequently, betrayed more frequently. This atmosphere of perfidy, along with allodoxaphobia (fear of other people’s opinions), has made people reluctant in sharing their private problems with even trained psychiatrists and psychologists.

Sometimes the solution lies not in keeping mouth shut but in yelling and blurting out everything that has been burning you from the inside and killing you slowly day by day. So let’s keep sympathetic phrases and judgmental statements to ourselves. Let’s embrace other’s problems and give them wise advices. Let’s talk before we become preys to our own trepidations and complexes.