Everybody is known to the two sides of the coin. Let’s consider today one side overjoyed and another one side sorrowful. People seem to be happy and normal, but still, they carry so much invisible load.
“I believe the biggest stigma right now with mental health is that a lot of people are not talking about it.” – Mauro Ranallo.
Everybody is subsequently working on physical health, but what about mental health. Mental health is as important as physical health. Mental health includes: Emotional, Psychological and Social well being. When there is variation in emotional, psychological and social well being it advances to the mental illness. Mental illness affects your social work, daily routine activities and family. It refers to the immense range of mental health conditions like depression, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, eating disorders and addictive behaviours.
Let’s talk about today’s most prevalent illness that has affected more than 300 million people globally of all ages. One of the major contributors to the overall global burden of this disease is — Depression. India ranks 6th, and more than 40 million people are affected by depression. Everybody now knows about COVID-19 which has made world freefall. The United Nations has warned that the coronavirus could cause a global mental health crisis.
“COVID-19 will reshape our world. We don’t yet know when the crisis will end. But we can be sure that by the time it does, our world will look very different. How different will depend on the choices we make today.” – Josep Borrell.
What comes to in mind when we think, ask or talk about depression? Maybe it’s a disease, fear, judgement, foolishness, emptiness and loneliness. Depression has become a taboo word. People are afraid to speak (glossophobia) and to share about it. And even if one takes a step towards sharing, they are judged and people call them crazy, foolish, insensitive and mad.
Where does the real cause of depression lie? In my opinion it originates from belief, thoughts, how we think, behave and solve our problems. It is also derived from who we are surrounded by; people, work and family. The main problem is in people’s thinking. It is taken casually and neglected.
Many of us would have experienced being neglected by our friends, family members and colleagues. This leads to the person either focusing or losing focus towards themselves. This leads to not sharing problems with others, increases negative thoughts, insecurity, disappointment, loneliness, hopelessness and trust issues.
Nowadays, it’s easy to find the company for chilling, hanging and roaming out, but it’s more crucial to find the company in your dreadful time, those who can support you, cheer you, uplift you and bring confidence back in you. Many times knowing everything, a person may still dodge us thinking “let them deal in their own way”.
Ask some questions to yourself. How many of you ask your friends if everything is alright? How was your day? How many of you have supported someone in their dreadful times? How many of you have dodged someone knowing everything about them, thinking and saying that nowadays it’s normal to take it casually? Do they need support, care, love and kindness? At that end, ask yourself, are we becoming that selfish and insensitive where we find it difficult to listen to people?
This makes people settle down in one room of the house with a closed door and sometimes that closed doors never open. It’s easy to say visit the doctor and take medication, watch some motivational videos, read self-help books, do exercise and yoga, take a balanced diet, etc. Trying everything sometimes doesn’t make you feel better. What makes it better is sharing with someone who gives you their ears to listen to you. People don’t want advice. They need someone to listen and a heart to understand them.
At the end, no matter what happens, learning and knowing that you are not alone and different in this race is all one needs. We are all human beings and the cycle of joy and sorrow goes on. Know your worth, strength, beauty. You are not defected and weird. It’s okay to make mistakes; to have bad days and to be less than perfect. But it’s not okay to give up. It’s not okay to lose yourself.
Depression is real. Speak up before you give up.