Hi guys, I’m writing in reply to the World Health Organization Day theme for this year, 2017.
(To view my 2013 post about Hypertension, click the link: https://thetesleem.wordpress.com/2013/04/07/hypertension )
I guess, to different people, feeling/being depressed means different things. That is why I didn’t start this piece with a “standard” definition of the term (WebMD definition). There’s a spectrum of actions and reactions that constitute individual mental strengths. This may makes it difficult to decide based on symptoms what someone else is suffering from, without proper diagnosis.
I noticed major changes to my behaviour from about 2012. I had gone through something that I honestly haven’t been able to shake and recover from for years now. This led to always wanting to being detached from my environment, frequent mood swings, overthinking everything everytime……
Symptoms according to WebMD include:
-Feeling sad, anxious, or empty
-Not enjoying things you used to enjoy
-Feeling restless or irritable
-Suicide thoughts
For me, it has been a flux between bad moods, unhealthy eating habits, memory loss (deliberate and not so deliberate), short attention span.
Now, I can categorically tell you WHAT ARE NOT the solutions to depression.
Self pity does not do you any favours. As you will come to find out, you must attempt to brave through situations by first feeling good about yourself.
Drugs and other substance abuse is a common “escape” from your worries. One day you’re feeling depressed and you think; I’m gonna smoke a little weed man, get me lifted. Next day, toke some more to elevate from the stress. Fast-forward to a month later, you might not be able to distinguish between whether you’re smoking weed because you’re depressed, or you’re depressed because you’re smoking weed! This only complicates matters further most times.
Do not attach your feelings of happiness or self worth to another human being, because human beings leave. Whenever you feel down about a certain situation, take a step back to reassess, chances are you will realize that it wasn’t all gloom. Try to find happiness in yourself, no matter how small.
What to do: Exercise regularly, try to eat properly, laugh a little more everyday, set goals and meet them (this helps to elevate how you feel about yourself, and current situation). Most importantly, and can not be stressed nearly enough: SEEK PROFESSIONAL HELP. There are people that trained for this, and understand the condition better, from a medical perspective. Please endeavour to visit a professional if you’re not dealing well enough.
In case you are not going through anything that this post talked about, I implore you to spread the word so that people that are, know that they are not alone. I implore you from today, to treat your mental health and that of others as a big f***ing deal. You might be the difference between life and death.
If you need to talk, get at me:
ifeoyewale@live.com
Happy 7th of April.
Happy birthday to me.