Depression is the leading cause of disability in the world; in the United States, close to ten percent of adults struggle with the disease. But because it’s a mental illness, it can be a lot harder to understand than, say, high cholesterol. Helen M. Farrell examines the symptoms and treatments of depression, and gives some tips for how you might help a friend who is suffering.
I was just listening to the latest In The Trenches podcast. It’s normally a techie podcast but today Kevin had a nice interview with David Newberger, who spent quite a bit of time dealing with health issues that the doctor’s couldn’t diagnose. Turns out he was suffering from Conversion Disorder, which is where he developed…
I was reminded of something rather important today. You see, I had made plans to meet up with a friend of mine for lunch Friday, her birthday had recently passed, and I took the opportunity to offer to buy her lunch and get to spend some time catching up. Now, that’s not anything earth-shattering, but…
Some heavy reading for tonight, courtesy of Psych Central. Newsweek put out a six page article about Men and Depression in which they suggest that the rate of depression in men is vastly under reported because of the weakness it suggests: “Our definition of a successful man in this culture does not include being depressed,…
Pin Last week, I sat in on a webinar to discuss online privacy, and how to protect yourself. During the session it was mentioned that you want to be careful about your privacy settings on social networks, like Facebook, because you wouldn’t want to broadcast to your coworkers, or potential employers that you joined a group…
Pin Imagine frowning upon someone taking ibuprofen for a headache because they should “tough it out.” Or talking about how the common cold affects people “over there” and not your group.Â
It’s nonsense. Yet, when it comes to talking about mental health, people start that same nonsense as if they have never had a day where they struggle with anxiety or need to take a break from the stress of day-to-day life.Â
I think it’s time we started looking at mental health the way Dr. Lee describes it. We all have mental health issues of some form or another, just like we all have different physical ailments at times. Stigmatizing people who need mental healthcare and being unable to provide it is a failure for all of us.Â
Pin More importantly, though, is to understand what we say to each other because, as someone who was abused as a child and dealt with severe depression for years, I know what it’s like when people around you see you as less-than. I know what it feels like to feel that way internally, and that is part of the abuse and depression, but it was also part of society that told me that. The part that got uncomfortable any time I was around, or who gets on podcasts and blogs to talk about the damaged goods that abuse survivors are, or mocks “crazy people.” The solution to that is not to find another group that you consider to be beneath you; it’s to see the value in every life. To recognize the humanity in all of us and make political decisions that lift the humanity in all of us.Â
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