What is depression?

Have you ever felt like this?

“It was difficult for me to get out of bed in the morning. I wanted to hide under the covers and not talk to anyone. I lost my appetite and lost weight. Nothing seemed interesting or cool. Everything was dull. I felt tired all the time, my sleep was interrupted. But I knew that I had to move, otherwise my business would not be completed. At the same time, everything seemed impossible. I felt that nothing would ever change for the better.”

The above is just one of the many ways in which depression can occur. Each person’s experience of depression can be different. Depression is a very diverse illness with no single symptom, although there are some key symptoms that occur with depression:

• decreased mood
• loss of interest and zest for life
• energy reduction

Additional symptoms may include:

• decreased attention and concentration;
• decreased self-esteem and self-confidence;
• guilt and worthlessness (even in mild form);
• inconvenient and pessimistic about the future;
• thoughts or acts of self-harm or suicide;
• disturbed sleep;
• loss of appetite.

Symptoms should last for two weeks, a single experience is not depression. Symptoms of depression are expressed in behavior, thinking, emotions and physical reactions in the body.

You may feel like you are the only person in the world suffering from depression. In fact, it is estimated that one in five people will experience depression at least once in their lifetime. Depression can occur in anyone, regardless of age, gender, nationality, education, profession, or condition. Depression covers a person completely, taking away all vitality, energy, interests, hope, everything is seen only in a negative light.

Fear of stigmatization is also a noteworthy factor when seeking help and treatment for depression. This is one of the main reasons for seeking help late, thus contributing to the chronicity and worsening of depression. Stigma can be attached to a person both by the attitudes of society from outside and by the person himself, confirming the feeling of self-worth associated with depression.

When a person fractures his leg, he is never sent into a corner to be ashamed of the weakness of his bones, and he isn’t advised not to come out until he has gathered himself. We know that this attitude is not helpful for physical health problems. The same is true of mental illness.