“Oh, my favorite sports team just lost, I’m so depressed!” How many times have we heard or actually said things to that effect?
Depression is a word that is thrown around quite frequently and without actually understanding what the gravity of the term actually is. It is much more deeply rooted to be actually tossed around like a hot potato.
Especially in today’s world, when over 260 million people across the globe suffer from depression and related syndromes, it is crucial to understand the true severity of this and know how to actually deal with this monstrosity.
Therefore, in an attempt to spread this knowledge, here are a few key symptoms, the prevalent types and some effective methods to alleviate the impacts of this condition.
Symptoms of depression
It is crucial to note that a healthy experience of sadness or grief should not be confused with depression. However, at the same time, depression should not be discounted as sadness or grief.
A person suffering from it is likely to display signs of lower energy, disinterest in the activities that bring or used to bring them pleasure, insomnia, aversion to eating, reduced ability to concentrate, and continued overwhelming emotions of bleakness.
Types of depression
The various types of depression differ from each other basis their causes and/or the duration for which they last. Let’s take a look.
The list outlined here is not exhaustive in nature. There are various other types, which have not been highlighted in this article.
1. Major depressive disorder
A person suffering from this disorder has a major episode of symptoms being displayed for a short period, usually a few months. The causes of this type of disorder are either a combination of social, psychological, or biological stress or any of these stresses individually.
2. Persistent depressive disorder
It is also called Dysthymia. It is a mild form of depression that runs for two years or longer. The causes overlap with those of major depressive disorder.
3. Postpartum depression
This is exhibited by women after childbirth. What is important to note here is that women who exhibit postpartum depression are more likely to develop depressive disorders later on in their lives.
4. Bipolar disorder
This disorder causes the person to exhibit rapid mood swings that lie on the continuum of depressive and bleak lows to highly energetic and manic highs. The regular symptoms of depression are accompanied by delusions and extremely high energy at times.
The causes of this disorder have not been clearly identified just yet, but they might be a combination of altered brain chemistry, genetics, and environmental causes.
How to deal with depression in the modern age?
Before we discuss how to deal with this truly awful problem, one important fact that we should deal with is that there are times when we deny the existence of this problem, fearing judgment, lack of knowledge on the subject, or pure neglect. This is something that should be addressed before thinking about any ways to deal with it.
Acceptance is just as big a part of the diagnosis as the diagnosis itself. There is no shame in accepting when we are going through something difficult and need help.
Without further ado, let’s dive in.
1. Online Therapy
We are talking about the modern age now, aren’t we? Online therapy is an uptrend that has recently gained some steam. The key benefit of online therapy is the presence of anonymity, which becomes a key factor for some of us for the acceptance of this problem.
Online therapy allows us to maintain our privacy and use the technological marvels to deal with something as serious, which has been malignant to the society since its inception.
2. Have your support group
There are always people who are there to help us out. Times might make it seem like we’re all alone, and we have to deal with this burden by ourselves, but finding just one person to talk to and confide in makes a tremendous difference in handling the problem effectively.
Pick your phone up and reach out to someone you trust. We promise you it would be worth it.
3. Sweat it out
Working out has been an age-old mechanism to deal with depression. Various studies show the tremendous impact of physical exercise in dealing with this abhorrent issue. Working out for as little as 30 minutes a day boosts the secretion of serotonin and dopamine which help deal with depression.
While ending this article, there should be a special mention. Depression is for real, and it has spread like wildfire in modern times. And this is not a one and done deal. This is something one deals with every single day. But things do get better, gradually, but they do. And we’ve got a whole lot to look forward to after this storm ends! Good luck, and we wish you the best!
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