What is depression?

Depression occurs when the feelings of sadness, hopelessness, helplessness linger for a long period of time and do not seem to become better or go away easily. It is a mood disorder that affects at least 1 in 4 adults sometime or other in their lives (According to World Health Organization 264 million people are suffering from depression). If you have been feeling low, sad or depressed for sometime, you are not alone. 

While depression can be triggered when a person experiences difficult life events like sudden loss of loved one, job or support, sustained periods of stress, sudden onset of disease -it has genetic and psychological origins. It is also known that specific thinking patterns and unhelpful attitudes like  over-stressing the negative, thinking too much or worrying too much, ruminating over events, a sense of low self-esteem, identifying too much with success or failure, a general lack of acceptance are dominant in people who suffer from depression. 

Help is available in many ways- psychiatrists, health experts, therapists, healers and meditation teachers recommend an array of solutions in the form of prescription drugs to manage the moods, self therapy- working on thoughts, feelings, behaviors, yoga, exercise and meditation practices, nutrition as well as spirituality. Social support is also vital for coping with depression.

Depression can manifest as a mood disorder in the beginning- our thinking and feeling is affected and slowly start affecting different aspects of life like withdrawing from social interactions, not enjoying simple things, not participating with others etc. Some typical symptoms include-

• feeling sad, tearful, low, guilty, or empty
• losing enjoyment in pleasurable activities
• appetite or weight changes
• too little or too much sleep
• feeling agitated or tired
• having trouble concentrating
• declining sexual interest
• not enough motivation to carry out daily activities

Not everyone with depression will experience all of these symptoms. 

If you have lingering feelings of sadness, grief, hopelessness or helplessness that are not going away, you should immediately ask for professional help. There are many self assessments (like https://www.psycom.net/depression-test/) are available to evaluate how you are doing on your wellbeing- you can take those to get an idea of where you are on your wellbeing and happiness and decide if you need to get professional help.

To cope with depression there are many therapies available that work on different aspects of the mind like staying in the present (Mindfulness based therapies), working on our thoughts (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) and working on our acceptance of ourselves (Acceptance Commitment Therapy). To learn more about them read https://pahoti.org/how-therapy-helps, to practice therapy online (under the guidance of a mental health practitioner) try http://satiapp.com. 

To get professional help please contact a mental health practitioner or contact us.