Our
lives are colored by numerous textures of feeling ranging from deep joy
to being down in the dumps with many shades of grey in between. It is
but natural to feel sad at the death of a loved one, or to be
melancholic to be leaving a familiar place or to be upset when we have
disagreements with people or get laid off from work.
In fact, there are many instances in life where we feel the blues and this is but natural. However, what is
not
psychologically healthy is to remain in a perpetual state of dysphoria,
which could be described as a “profound state of dis-ease, unhappiness
and dissatisfaction,” day in and day out.
According to the DSM V,
the following symptoms would help you identify Persistent Depressive
Disorder (Dysthymia) in yourself or a loved one:
- Depressed mood for most of the day, for more days than not, as indicated by either subjective or observation by others
- Poor appetite or overeating
- Insomnia or hypersomnia
- Low energy or fatigue
- Low self esteem
- Poor concentration or difficulty making decisions
- Feelings of hopelessness
If
a person embodies having a “depressed mood for most of the day” with
two or more other symptoms one can be said to be clinically depressed.
Being clinically depressed, in turn, will have negative consequences on
one’s health, well being, relationships, work, productivity and bring
down the overall quality of one’s life. Research has shown, that high
levels of the stress hormone cortisol have been found in the blood
stream of people who identified being depressed, this in turn reduces
immune function and makes any pre-existing medical disorder worse or may
perhaps even create new ones. What we can gauge from this is that
depressed people are more likely to be easily stressed and in turn,
people who have a low threshold to stress are more susceptible to
becoming depressed.
If an individual is in an intimate
relationship or has small children their having depression would impact
their loved one’s in very harmful ways where there is a diminishing of
real interpersonal contact and closeness since the depressed person is
no longer present to anything other than overwhelming feelings of
sadness. Spouses of depressed individuals report very low relationship
satisfaction as
depressions
gnaws away at the fabric of intimacy where emotional connection,
sexuality and simply having fun together is greatly reduced or becomes
non-existent Studies have also shown that children of depressed people
have a higher risk of being depressed themselves, as well as a
vulnerability to having addictions and exhibit behavioral disorders.
It
is extremely harmful to the self and to one’s loved ones to ignore
constant negative ruminations and feelings about one’s life, as they
could transition from being pathological to fatal, where individuals
driven by disturbing thoughts and emotions could end up taking their
life. Another alarming point regarding depression is that it has a
propensity to recur once a person has suffered from it before. Since
depression, in essence, is a thinking dis-ease, which is premised on
habitual negative thinking, perceiving and evaluating one’s self and the
world, this in turn creates neural pathways in the brain, literally
grooves in our psyche, which get easily activated when certain triggers
are present. Over a period of time, even small mundane disappointments
may set off disproportionate feelings of anguish and hopelessness.
Although,
ironically, depression is extremely common, with 20 percent of the
population suffering from it at any given time; literally, perhaps one
in every five people experiences depression, it remains unfortunately,
ignored, undetected and untreated. While awareness is increasing
regarding the importance of mental health globally, in India,
historically and perhaps even to some extent today, psychological issues
have been ignorantly stigmatized. Individuals are made to feel ashamed
of themselves for having life traumas and upheavals and are marginalized
for seeking help.
Contemporarily, this is a very unfortunate set of
circumstances, as historically in ancient India,
dukkha was
greatly acknowledged by all philosophical traditions, and especially,
highlighted by the ultimate healer and therapist, Gautama Buddha who
stated that “Life is Suffering.”
If you or anyone close to you is
depressed it is extremely important that you seek professional
psychotherapeutic attention, while exercise, yoga, meditation and good
nutrition are useful adjuncts and supports, what the depressed person
really needs is a facilitation to cognitively re-frame and dis-identify
with negative thoughts while developing the ability to tolerate distress
and work though disturbing affect, which, unfortunately, does not
happen automatically or with family support.
Sonera is a
psychotherapist who specializes in counselling psychology, individual, family, couples, group and
cognitive behaviour therapy in Mumbai, India
Address: Flat No 1. Ground Floor, Firdaus, Vitthaldas Thackersey Marg, New Marine Lines, Marine Lines, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400020
Website: http://www.sonerajhaveri.com
Phone:09820023623
Email - sonerajhaveri@gmail.com
