Depression: A cruel ailment
Ummar Jamal
Depression is defined as mood disorder characterized by sadness, anxiousness, hopelessness, insomnia, fatigue, lack of concentration and reduced sexual desire .World Health Organization (WHO) has ranked depression as the among the list of most urgent health problems worldwide and has predicted it to become number two in terms of disease burden in 2020.
Depression is a health problem with no proper test to diagnose it. It victimizes a man stealthily. Because initially everyone takes it as mood fluctuations, which is part of normal life.
Depression is very cruel ailment, crueler than lethal cancer and virulent pandemic covid-19. It makes one’s life worse than hell. It renders a man desperate and dejected. A depressed person is like a dead man with no hopes and desires. It creates such a situation, in which a person gets ready to commit suicide.
Depressed persons talk absentmindedly, eat unwillingly, study disturbingly and sleep untimely. Their mind it always preoccupied with over thinking. Their smiles are fake. They become very displeased at trifle. When they want to, they can’t weep.
Depression is stigmatic also. People of different mentality see depression with different eyes. Because of this, depressed persons often hesitate to share their problems with others including their family members and friends. They become less expressive, which makes their problems more complicated.
Many life events like loss of job, failure in examinations and entrances, break-up of relationship, spontaneous demise of closest ones etc. are considered to be some causes of depression. However, they are many other causes also. Huge unemployment, high competition among students, late marriage and over use of phone etc. are other potent causes of depression.
In a place like Kashmir the turmoil also gives rise to mental illness of people here. Kashmiris are in perplexed situation. The bands, hartals have an adverse impact on destabilizing mental health. The unpredictable future of Kashmir has given rise to mental illness. Nobody knows what happens next? Uncertainty has captured many minds here.
A hospitalized-based study conducted for depression revealed that depressive disorders is increasing (1971:16%, 1980:19% and in 1989:32%) among the patients who were attended at the psychiatry hospital in Kashmir.
I see depression everywhere in contemporary world. I found it in my friends, relatives, neighbours and class mate’s .It perturbed me too.
Back in winter, we were attending political science class in university. While teacher was teaching a loud scream resonated in the classroom. This was followed by consistent screeches for next few moments .The person who was crying was one among our batch mates. Everything stopped and everyone was looking towards the young woman in the class. Eventually, we got to know that she was battling depression. The felling of overpowering stress made her scream at her fullest.
C. S Lewis says, “Mental pain is less dramatic than physical pain, but it is more common and also harder to bear. The frequent attempt to conceal mental pain increases the burden: it is easier to say “My tooth is aching” than to say “My heart is broken.”
One should never ignore depression as mood fluctuations that people regularly experience as a part of life. Because God forbid! it may take a person to such level of unbearable stress and intolerable pain where one resorts to suicide or other illegal activities like drugs.
If realized at proper time it is easily curable. Its treatments may include medicines (like antidepressants) and a type of therapy called psychotherapy. Psychotherapy is sometimes called talk therapy. It involves and talking relationship between therapist and patient.
Tips to overcome depression
Almighty Allah says in Quran “And whoever turns away from my remembrance indeed will have a depressed life “(c:20 , v 124),The first and foremost cure for depression is remembrance of Allah. The more you remember Almighty Allah the more cheerful you become. Apart from this below mentioned steps will help you come out of depression.
Always compete with yourself not anyone else
Engage yourself in some sports on daily basis
Talk to your friends when you are idle. If they are not available then, call mental health helpline numbers
Avoid overuse of phones and other electronic gazettes
Spend a good amount of time with your family
Watch inspirational video and read inspirational stories
Look at people who are much below your level, when you feel you are worthless
Try to imbibe the habit of early sleeping and early rising
Avoid Over thinking.
KV Network
