DEPRESSION

Nobody can say that there are some people who have not experienced stress at least once in life.  It is an indispensible phenomenon in the walk of life.   We cannot live without stress. Because it is indispensible. It also helps us to maintain our psychological health to an extent. But if it continues, it becomes a disease called Depression. Once in Egyptian literature, this disease was known as Melancholia and the same is now known as Depression.

This disease varies in different parts of the world as per the culture, religion, societies  etc. In some religion,  this disease is innumerable. Depression accompanies with some diseases and plays an important role for causing many diseases. When we got a disease, we forget the reason and we treat only to that disease.  For eg. BP, Diabetes Mellitus,  Cholesterol, etc. This may have different reasons, but the one unknown reason is Depression.  Nobody is taking attention to treat our  mental ill condition, which is causing to many physiological diseases, because of the least importance of study of Psychiatry or Psychology in our country. In Europe and America, people have good muscle power, because they maintain their mind power also. Many of us are trying to increase our muscle strength and beauty, by going to Gym or Beauty Centre. But very rare people are there who care to have a healthy and powerful mind.

All of us bear tension and misery. It calms within one or two days or in a week. But some people are there who are lone and borne silently  without saying anything to others about their tension. After sometime, it becomes permanent in their mind and they don’t know one disease is forming in their mind.

To study Depression, we must study many things. As this article may become long and boring, we can study it briefly.  It would be an asset in our treasury of knowledge.

What is Depression?   

The in-equilibrium of our system of neurotransmission of Automatic Nervous system in brain, causes to many dreadful conditions, in physical and psychological level.  All of these result into Depression.  We experience this in mind, but origin of this comes from brain only. Continuing miserable conditions and tensions, lead to bio-chemical changes in neurotransmission and thereby in-equilibrium leads to condition like Depression.

Depression is a Mood disorder. If the bio-chemical flow done by neurotransmission, varies from a constant level, it is a Mood disorder.

Symptoms

We feel Depression in different psychological and physiological sick conditions. But nobody thinks it is Depression. Very rare people realize the Depression which causes to many diseases.  Even if they know, ignore the same saying it is a head ache or gas trouble or tension from lost love of lover. See some symptoms below;

1)    Having interest in nothing. Loneliness.

2)    Misery without reason, fatigue etc.

3)    Hatred, Sudden Angriness

4)    Reasonless Anxiety,  Fear, Insomnia

5)    Least appetites and sometimes more appetites.

6)    Sleep more or less

We see somebody says no mood, feel fatigue etc. If these symptoms are controled suddenly no problem. But reasonless fear, failure feeling, worthlessness, helplessness, hopelessness, cannot sleep, sit or stand. These require more attention. If these symptoms and first said symptoms, both seen in one person, it is Depression.

Children, Teens have got tensions and may not be expressed in the face. Loneliness, angry, study problems, stomach ache, head ace, anything may be the symptoms.

Older aged people may express their, tension, sorrow etc. in their face. Bad memory, angry,  long sickness,  anxiety of their sickness, debts, all are reasons prone to Depression and thereby may lead to suicide.

Stress and depression

Stress is an auto defense technique of our mind, controlled by our automatic nervous system, to defend against pressure  situation.  Everybody experiences stress. Even children also experience this.   In an adult,   this stress will be serious.  In both the case, if it continues more than some period of time, say more than  2  weeks, it becomes depression. Stress is not a disease, but depression is a disease.

Depression is not formed suddenly. It forms gradually. Our stress level must be controlled every day.  Always, as everybody is concerned, it is not a viable thing.   Some techniques are there to control the same.   All of us have cycle of stress, which is known as Stress Cycle. It is just like  rotating from one point and comes back to same point.  So it would be better to look into  stress cycle also.

 

Stress cycle and formation of  Depression

When we have interest in medical awareness, we must study some medical facts also.  Here we can see how the depression forms;

There are three parts in the brain related to depression, viz, Hypothalamus, Limbic System and Pituitary  and three Mono Amines or Neurotransmitters, viz,   Dopamine, Epinephrine, Serotonin. 

As we experience stress, as a first step of defense against stress, Limbic system gives the required defense to alert against stress. To normalize the mental calmness, firstly Limbic System expels some neurotransmitters like dopamine, epinephrine and serotonin. These travels to Hypothalamus and  it produces some hormone releasing chemicals like  Adreno  Cortico Tropic hormones . These reach to Pituitary gland. Then Pituitary gland produces some stimulating factors which are  required to important organs to defend well against stress. These factors  join in the blood stream and reach to certain glands like Thyroid and Adrenal medulla etc. These glands produce regulating factors like Steroid and these also join in blood stream and travels again to Limbic system.  Then the neurotransmitters like serotonin which increase the stress, will be inactivated. Everybody has this cycle to regulate high stress level to normalcy. This is known as stress cycle. 

This regularly happens in everybody. But if  stress continues more than 2  weeks,  it leads to a disease called Depression.  Because for them, the Hypothalamus Pituitary  Axis gets damaged and may trigger Depression.  But, still the Adrenal Cortex continues to release the releasing factors like Steroid, which is prone to disease again. If we deliberately try to control our stress, the production of releasing factors stops slowly.

Diversion of Depression

Certain people will never accept, if somebody has a disease like depression. If ignored this will divert to some other illness. Still then we, the common people will not accept these illness are from the consequence of Depression.  Depression may divert to other psychological or physiological sick condition. Eg. Psychosis, Heart disease etc. 

Somebody may experience diseases like head ache, stomach ache, pains in joints, heart etc.  Afraid patient meet  a doctor and when consulting with doctor, he instructs to have a check up and will get report “nothing abnormal”.  Whole life somebody will be wandering hospitals and doctors  one after another. But will never be cured.

Some cases of suicide and road accidents are the result of long borne Depression.

Reasons

Many reasons are there. Still some common reasons are given below;

1)    Tortures, abuses and bad experiences in the period  of infancy, childhood and adolescence and penetration of its consequences in genes, may lead to Depression in future.

2)    Heredity. In some family this shows main reason.

3)    Broken relationships with friends and relatives.

4)    Death or long separation of close relatives and family. Death is natural phenomenon, still somebody is not able to accept the same.

5)    Divorce, Losing of employment, starting new establishments etc.

6)    Psychological and physiological chronic illnesses.

Except those above written, some peculiar reasons are there in modern life. See some of those below

Smoking, Gudka, Alcoholism, Insomnia, Face book Fever, Sorrowful ending of Cinema or serial, lack of fish foods intake. These may  feel eccentric, but true in a modern life.

Different Types of Depression

There are mainly three types of Depression;

1)    Melancholic

In this type, person cannot sleep well, do not eat well, without interest in sex

2)    Atypical

This may be opposite to Melancholic. Here increase in sleep, appetites, sex, obesity etc. will be seen.

3)    Psychotic

Here, patient shows psychotic symptoms also. Fears that somebody comes to kill, enemies everywhere etc. just like a phobia.

And other types are as

4)    Post Partum Depression – PPD

This is neonatal depression specially happens in  women, after delivery. In some countries, this case is in 1 out of every 8 woman. Normally PPD is in 5% to 25% after child birth.

5)    Endogenous, exogenous, unipolar, bipolar and  dysthymia.

Anyhow, the basic reasons are  as described above. According to the circumstances of daily living, this will be differed and classified as above. 

How to cure Depression

Some changes in life can take off Depression. See some ways to cure the same;

1)    Keep some disciplines in life. Get up early and correct time etc.

2)    Start simple exercises like, walking, swimming, jogging etc. atleast 30 mins. in a day. This will create more endorphin in the body which is fighting against stress.

3)    Some foods which are rich in omega 3 fatty acids, folic acids etc. will help. Fishes, Vegetables, Fruits are rich sources.

4)    Try to have sound sleep. Avoid anything to disturb sleep.

5)    Do some works with responsibility. If you do not have any responsibility, take something.

6)    Destroy discouraging thoughts like I am worthless, helpless, failure thoughts etc, Realize what we think is not right. There would be so many others those who are liking you, your creations etc.

7)    If nothing seems under control, do not hesitate to consult a counselor or psychologist or psychiatrist.

8)    Do the things you never did. If you do not have reading habit, start it. If you do not like hear music, start it. etc. Thought changes will help to change bio-chemicals in brain and thereby  create dopamine (a pleasure increasing hormone)..

9)    If all of above did not help you to turn you happy and calm,  we can assume depression, still try again and again or consult with a doctor.

Those who are having good education, culture, healthy heredity, good sense, discretion etc would be healthy in mind and body. They do not have superstitions. They would have calm, peaceful mind. They are not anxious about future, sickness etc. But education only is not enough, we must have experience and intellect. We must study new things daily. Those who are educated, mentally healthy, maintaining healthy social relations, would not have psychological defects.

Let us strive to have a generation of healthy and prosperous world.