Depression Road

Depression with Bidirectional Illnesses I've said this before... depression doesn't walk alone in most cases. The importance of this cannot be emphasized enough because the coexistence of conditions often lead to worsening conditions. The constant exposure/experience of the simultaneous illnesses often end up in competition for attention which feed the cycle and make things worse for both (or multiple conditions). While I cannot list all combinations in this post, I'd like to illustrate the point with some common occurrences. Depression and Insomnia It has been proven by research that insomnia is a huge risk factor for depression as well as a consequence of depression. This is not hard to understand. In layman terms, those of us who don't get enough sleep often experience lack of energy, memory problems, and a host of other symptoms that make normal functioning of body and mind difficult on a daily basis. The frustration with not being able to do all the thing...

I think we all know that depressed people exhibit withdrawal from people and things at some point. For some, this is a positive occurrence but for many, it is making their condition worse. Here is my take on the matter... Social withdrawal Negative: According to many, " social withdrawal is the most common telltale sign of depression ". The reasons for this are many but generally have to do with our unintentional isolation from people's input on our thinking.  The isolation causes an increase on our stress response thereby making the situation worse. Positive: When withdrawal is by choice, as in  intended , we make a conscious decision to take time away from people to resolve something or things that no longer serve us. I have done this many times and with good results. I also saw others gain from taking time for themselves and come out of the self-imposed isolation with better understanding of their condition, come up with avenues to do things differently, enforc...

Depression and food Not everyone with depression has a weight issue but most will encounter food issues like cravings, upset stomach, cramps, nausea, irregular eating pattern, mood eating, and so forth. Weight gain Here is the first picture to ponder... If you struggle keeping your weight down, you are probably in the depression-obesity cycle. Cravings People with depression often have cravings, especially carbohydrates. Sugar is actually hindering the management of depression. Stayed tuned for added materials.

The workplace should be a significant source of positive experiences boosting our self-esteem, sense of accomplishment, and professional growth.  For many, this is the case. However, there is a growing number of people (both employees and leaders) who suffer with mental health problems, primarily depression and anxiety. The World Health Organization  estimates that lost productivity to mental illness costs $1 trillion per year to the global economy. A recent development in this area is burnout which has been classified as an occupational phenomenon due to stress, disengagement, cynicism, fatigue, and other typical toxic work environment factors. In this post, I'd like to highlight some things companies do that may not be apparent to the professional environment but most definitely contributes to the increase of mental health issues in the workplace. I think we would decrease a significant amount of mental illness if we just cut out the mixed messages.  Here ar...

I will outline attitudinal difference between acknowledging and accepting depression. Acknowledging means that you are fully aware of your negative mental state and have the choice of finding ways to deal with it.  This also means that you are not in denial.  Those who have not acknowledged their state of mind and emotions caused by depression do not have a choice but suffer. Acknowledging also means that you now reached the point where you can embark on the depression road to make life better.  You can seek more information about your particular version of depression, find the right medication, and engage with a therapist. Acknowledging also means that you can start self-observation, self-examination, and self-awareness practices.  There are a lot of resources out there.  My advice would to be read some and identify a few sources that really resonates with you (like it is your style) so that you can put reading into practice. The most important thing is...

We are truly failing our young people with depression! Take a look at the comparison. It is astounding to me to see that 60.1% of adolescents received NO treatment for their depression while it is about half of that for adults. The picture is even more bleak when it comes to proper treatment of medication and therapy. The most scary thing is that these numbers only represent the population with diagnosed cases.  Depending on the source, the estimates of undiagnosed cases could be as high as  two-third  in the US and even more globally. I can think of many reasons for this. 1. Young people are less capable/willing to communicate their need for help. Ideas: school programs, volunteer therapists, online forums, mentoring, buddy system, develop a behavioral assessment list that is unique to children 2. Parents are not aware of their child's mind Ideas: recommend psychological assessment as prevention, educate about signs of depression, provide platforms/even...

Truthfully, I have never seen a person with depression who doesn't have some other mental and/or physical condition. There are many studies, one of which was published in JAMA Psychiatry , that we have a 1 in 5 chance to experience depression in our lifetime.  The findings indicate comorbidity (existing together) with other psychiatric disorders as follows: substance use disorder - 57.9% previous anxiety disorder - 37.3% personality disorder - 31.9% This study also points out that we have an increased rate of self-medication with other substances like cannabis.  Personally, I use nicotine (my addiction) and Nutella. Depression is also very common with people who have physical illness. Here is a fairly simple read from the Medical Journal of Australia  that discusses the complexity of having depression and physical problems. The gist of physical illness and depression is that there is a pretty good chance of: - having both - medicine often treats the ph...