Depression

“Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; and often times we call a man cold when he is only sad.”  – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Life is full of ups and downs. Everyone has those times where they feel completely and absolutely miserable. But for some people, those downs last much longer. For people suffering from depression, those downs, those feelings interfere with their everyday life. Interfere with their relationships, interfere with the way they treat the people around them, prevent them from enjoying things they normally would have.

Everyone can suffer from depression – even children. But somehow in Guyana, even though there have been several campaigns to alert people to its insidious and pernicious effects, we just dismiss its prevalence here.
And there are different types of depression. There’s major depression. Where the symptoms are so severe that the persons’ ability to sleep, study and eat is affected. And there’s minor depression, with symptoms lasting up to two weeks, but could develop into a major depressive disorder if left untreated.
And then there’re people suffering from Bipolar disorder (aka manic-depressive illness), which is characterised by cycling mood changes – extreme high (manic) and extreme lows (depressive). Bipolar disorder often develops in a person’s late teens or early adult years.
Persons suffering from depression may feel persistently sad, worthless, anxious, hopeless or empty. They may be irritable, fatigued and listless. They might have trouble sleeping or they may be sleeping too much. They might have trouble concentrating or making decisions. They may overeat or lose their appetite.
And one of the more serious aspects of a person being depressed, is that they think of committing suicide, they plan out their suicide, and might even attempt to commit suicide.
Not everyone will experience all of the symptoms or experience the symptoms to the same degree of severity.
Before puberty, boys and girls are equally likely to develop depression. By age 15, however, girls are twice as likely as boys to have had a major depressive episode. Children who develop depression often continue to have episodes as they enter adulthood.
If someone you care about is suffering from depression, you should offer them emotional support, talk to them and listen to them. Actually listen to what they’re saying. Try to remove your preconceived notions and judgement and actually listen to what the person in front of you is trying to say.
And of course one of the most important things to do is to help your friend or relative to get diagnosed and treated.
Depression is serious and shouldn’t be taken lightly or passed off as being unimportant. Persons suffering from depression might hit rock bottom and decide to take their own lives. And by that time, it’ll be too late to help them.
So be supportive. Help your friends and relatives suffering from depression. Help them to get the treatment they need before it’s too late. We need to create a bigger awareness for this illness which is not taken seriously enough in Guyana.