Hey guys!!! Happy monday!!! This is a new post by Ayokunle Adedipe (you should know her by now) . For some time now we’ve been hearing and reading about people getting depressed and wanting to commit suicide and its becoming something to worry about.. Ayo is shedding more light and writing her own view on this. Read , comment, share and subscribe!
Depression: a state of feeling sad or a psycho neurotic or psychotic disorder marked especially by sadness, inactivity, difficulty in thinking or concentration, increase or decrease in appetite and time spent sleeping, feelings of dejection and hopelessness and sometimes suicidal thoughts or an attempt to commit suicide(Merriam-Webster’s medical desk dictionary).
I am going to be writing this from my own point of view and also a bit from whatever knowledge I have gathered. Let me start by saying anyone can be depressed. It is not a disorder for women or men or any other means of identification. With the definition I gave above, you should understand the features of depression better.
In Nigeria or Africa, we have refused to embrace the importance of understanding mental illness. We have refused to put aside religious beliefs and understand that sometimes, people suffering from mental illness need medical help. I have been hearing and reading about alot of people who were depressed and eventually committed suicide. Except the normal bad situations or conditions that life has caused, There are a lot of medical conditions that can cause depression: Diabetes, arthritis, lupus, hypothyroidism( deficient activity of the thyroid gland) and even Post partum depression(PPD) which is the most ignored in this part of the world. PPD is the depression suffered by a mother following childbirth typically arising from the combination of hormonal changes, psychological adjustment to motherhood and fatigue. We need to be more aware about what people around you are going through. Not everyone that smiles or says ‘I’m fine’ is actually fine. Check up on people and let them share whatever is bothering them. Life can’t be good for everyone everytime. Depression might not lead to suicide but it can lead to obesity or anorexia or even hypertension.
For people that are depressed, before I continue. Suicide is not the answer. Suicide is far from the answer. Being a Christian or Muslim or any other religion, suicide is a sin. You think you are doing people a favor by killing yourself, it just makes people go through that same cycle of depression. Please if you are going through something, seek help. Talk to someone no matter how little the matter looks. Things develop. For those that are still on the verge of depression, look on the brighter side. I was on that verge once but I had to talk to my mum, she made me realize there’s more to this life than failure or sadness. There’s always something greater waiting for you. No matter how rejected you feel, there is still someone or something to live for. You will overcome, always remember that.
