What is depression? And how it affects human health?

Mood naturally fluctuates and everyone experiences high and lows in their lives. But in some cases, changes in mood become long lasting, debilitating and can impair someone’s ability to hold down a job, or sustain meaningful relationships.

Therefore, depression may be defined as a prolonged state of sadness or stress experienced by an individual which can be due to numerous reasons like anxiety and stress, financial problems, losing a job, unhappy relationship, various health problems and undesirable events may also be a cause of depression.  It is estimated the around 10 percent of people will at some point in their lives suffer from depression.

Therefore, depression may be defined as a prolonged state of sadness or stress experienced by an individual which can be due to numerous reasons like anxiety and stress, financial problems, losing a job, unhappy relationship, various health problems and undesirable events may also be a cause of depression.  It is estimated the around 10 percent of people will at some point in their lives suffer from depression. 

Many studies reveal that many brain cells that regulates mood become dysregulated in depression.  In depression, an individual response excessively to negative events. This causes physiological and behavioral change in response to these negative events. Depressed people are more susceptible to stress which can cause changes in the brain and may cause inappropriate responses to emotional events.

There are many factors that contribute to trigger symptoms of depression. These include social factors like bullying of children, ragging, peer pressure, fear etc. Environmental factors like various pollutants which alter the normal functioning of the body and affects central nervous system. A person with lack of yoga training and physical exercise became more vulnerable to these environmental factors.

Symptoms of Depression- Depression or a mood disorder is characterized by several symptoms like Feeling sad.

  • Distressed.
  • Unmotivated.
  • Excessively tired. 
  • Losing interest in once pleasurable activities.
  • Many people from depression also suffers from anxiety.
  • Loss of appetite.
  • Sleeplessness or over sleeping.
  • Weight loss.
  • Anxiety and insomnia.
  • Stress and anger issues.
  • Changing in sleeping and eating habits.
  • Refusing social interactions.
  • Increased consumption of alcohol and smoking.
  • Lack of concentration.
  • Deteriorating work performances.
  • Thoughts of suicide and death.

Now adays, various unwanted and undesirable events are taking place in the lives of an individual which became so hectic and problematic to them.  It became so difficult to cope with these things that result in stress and anxiety. Prolonged stress and anxiety that take place for more then two to three months in an individual reflects the symptoms of depression or we can also say that a person is suffering from depression.

These problems are common among people. But these problems are often considered as stigma in many societies and that prevents the victims from seeking proper help. People are also unaware about depression or they do not want to talk about their suffering. This is may be due to lack of knowledge or fear of other opinion towards them. This careless attitude results in long lasting effects which cause various health problem or the person became so vulnerable that he finally ends his life.

How depression can be cured?

Depression can be cured. Following are the measures undertaken to get relief from the depression-

  • Medications- Depression is a disorder of the brain. Depression persists and interferes with everyday life until properly treated. There are many effective treatments for depression like anti-depressants. Anti-depressants are very useful now a days.  It stimulates the brain cells and control extreme emotions.
  • Regular exercise– Physical exercise and yoga training are two most important part of remedy to relieve stress and tension. It makes us strong and provide us mental strength. Now a days, physical exercise become a part of life to maintain body fit and immune.
  • Relaxation Exercise– There are many relaxation exercises like meditations are to be done to make the mind peaceful and away from all the worry and tensions. Relaxation exercises also include breathing exercises that make the body and mind stress free.
  • A Well-balanced diet – A well balanced and a healthy diet with full of vitamins, minerals, proteins in equal quantities is a healthy diet. A healthy diet can help to make our immune system strong and helpful in coping up of various diseases and infections
  • Positive thinking- A positive mind can make the individual attitude positive towards own suffering. By diverting our mind to the useful or positive atmosphere makes our inner soul happy and person feels cheerful. An individual way of thinking also changes in a positive way.  It provides us strength and make us happy.
  • Proper sleep- It is very useful to take proper sleep. It is said that eight-hour sleep is very important for our body. So, one should get proper sleep. A person who takes a proper sleep, develop the ability to think properly and make mind sharp.
  • Therapy– Therapy is the best method to make ourselves free from stress. Writing and finding a creative way to express your feelings can impact our lives in a better way. So, if a person finds it difficult to deal with stress and need immediate help, he should consult with a doctor or undergo therapy to avoid long term effects.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *