Depression is a huge problem that many people are facing. It has become such a big problem that it affects about 6.7 percent of people in the U.S age 18 and older in a given year (“Encyclopedia: Depression”). Depression is a very common mental disorder. Most people will be affected by depression in their lives, either directly or indirectly. They could be affected through a friend or family member. Everyone experiences times when they feel sad. This is a normal part of being a human. But depression however is a medical condition which is quite different from everyday moodiness. The biggest problem with depression today is that it spreads fast and affects so many different ages of kids. Depression is a topic that everyone knows about because of how common it is.
There are two types of depression, major depression and dysthymic disorder. Major Depression often leads to death or suicide. Others also suffer physical symptoms such as fatigue, change in appetite or weight, sleeping problems, being lazy, and it may occur at any age but it is very common in women at age thirty-eight. Fifthteen percent commit suicide (“Encyclopedia: Depression”). Compared to major depression, Dysthymic Disorder is a more mild, long-term condition with longer symptoms that last for at least a year in children and two years in adults. It is more common in females than males. The most common age is 31. This is because at the average age of 31 most adults are experiencing the hardest time of their lives with kids and having a wife. At this age it is common to be in debt because of the expenses they pay for. This includes vacations, birthday parties, holidays, new vehicles, or a new house for a family. (“Encyclopedia: Depression”).
Depression has many causes that can sneak up on the person that is depressed and start to affect them if they are not aware that they are leading to depression. It’s not exactly known what the main causes are but as of now it seems the biggest causes is from brain chemistry, hormones, inherited traits, early childhood trauma, and patterns of negative thinking. According to the world health organization, depression ranked as the leading cause of disability in the 21st century (“Encyclopedia: Depression”). It is very popular for depression to start in the home. This usually starts from parents that don’t treat their kids or help them out with decisions that they could be stressed about making.
They should give them options about what college to attend or what career they want to go in. A parent needs to help guide their kids to success so they don’t get stuck and lead themselves down a bad path. In the home, depression can be a disease that spreads fast throughout the house. If a depressed family member comes home they could spread it to others because of the negative activity.
Depression is very complicated, chromosomes in the body work together to create small effects, rather than a single chromosome that contributes to a possible disease risk (“Causes of Depression”). Alcohol is very dangerous when involved with someone who has depression. It is very possible that they could get addicted to it and it would create many more problems for them. They usually don’t realize what it’s doing to their body until it’s to late. But alcohol being legal is hard to stop but it is the wrong kind of antidepressants to be using. Underage drinking causes a lot of problems for many teens who are trying to make themselves feel better by drinking.
Only this makes someone’s depression worse. When they drink alcohol, it makes them think it’s working. Also stimulants such as cocaine, crack, and even meth can speed up the mind and body, creating a feeling of increased energy and making who’s depressed always on alert. If they abuse these drugs, their craving will never be satisfied. They constantly want more drugs to get over depression (Diliger).
The effects of depression in the body are often physical. It can keep someone awake at night, making it hard to not think about their problems that are making them depressed. This causes lasting sadness, emptiness, hopelessness, and can make them feel guilty, which can affect them every day. This can also affect changes such as having trouble remembering things, or even difficult decision making. Depression can cause thoughts of suicide or harming themselves by either cutting themselves for attention or they can start to be very reckless. (“Causes of Depression”). They could also do things to their body to get attention. Also, it can interfere with their everyday activities, it can make them feel lonely and cause issues of not showing up to work or school.
Having depression can put serious stress on the body. It could possibly even cause someone to have a heart attack if the person who suffers from depression does not get it treated. When someone is severely stressed out or depressed they could start to do bad things to help them think there are more important or that deserve more than the normal person that isn’t suffering from depression or having stress. The could start to hurt people or get them involved with bad activities including drugs, alcohol abuse or any other way they could feel more power than somebody else.
Some effects in depression are making a habit of overeating and the loss of appetite. Some who suffer from depression use food to try to make themselves feel better. This can cope out stomach aches from stress. When someone has depression, the immune system slows down and loses the ability to fight off some disease, such as the common cold and long term disease (“Causes of Depression”).
Depression has many causes but it also has many solutions. By getting in a good routine helps a lot of depressed people with getting their lives back together. It forces them to stick to a gentle daily schedule and help get them back on track. Staying involved in activities and having daily responsibilities can help them keep your habits, this can help them with depression and it can help them feel accomplished. “When you’re depressed, you may want to pull back from life and give up your responsibilities at home and at work but don’t. Staying involved and having daily responsibilities can help you maintain a lifestyle that can help counter depression.
When you’re depressed, you may feel like you can’t accomplish anything. That makes you feel worse about yourself. To push back, set daily goals for yourself. You should start very small, make your goal something that you can succeed at, like doing the dishes every other day.” (“Causes of depression”). The best way to relieve stress and help slow depression is to make a schedule and plan out what events or activities that they want to get done on paper for them to see. This helps someone that is depressed get it out of their mind and making them feel that they are well organized.
“Exercising temporarily boosts feel-good chemicals called endorphins. It may also have long-term benefits for people with depression. Regular exercise seems to encourage the brain to rewire itself in positive ways. You don’t need to run marathons to get a benefit. Just walking a few times a week can help. Also eating healthy there is no magic diet that fixes depression. It’s a good idea to watch what you eat, though. If depression tends to make you overeat, getting in control of your eating will help you feel better” (“Causes of Depression”). Depression can also make it hard to get sleep. The person that is depressed can make changes to their lifestyle going to bed and getting up at the same time every day. Some ways to help you are to take distractions out of your room. Too little sleep can make depression worse. It makes you drowsy and careless (“Causes of Depression”).
Sometimes someone with depression needs to do something they enjoy and have fun. By having fun they can relieve a lot of stress and it helps them forget about what’s going on in their life. Sometimes if they have the money it helps to buy themselves a toy to enjoy such as beauty products for women and tools for men. This usually helps with someone’s stress and makes them feel better.
Depression is a huge issue that is causing many people to hurt themselves or to do damage to their lifestyles. Most people do not understand how easy it is to become depressed. Those that experience depression then struggle to get themselves out of the hole they dug themselves into because of the lack of finding a solution that fits them. Depression puts a lot of stress on the body. In a fight against depression, a lot of it is mental and changing themselves to better the way they act. When someone is depressed, they leap to the worst possible conclusions. Sometimes by changing up someone’s schedule and what they do every day may open up responsibilities for them. This can help them realize that there are other things that they can do that can make them feel better.
