Your sad life can be due to depression….it’s Ok to seek help!!!

Emotions and human life are inseparable……emotions are so omnipresent and omnipotent that even the thought, ‘i feel no emotions’ is full of emotions.……..that is the power of emotions…………….

DO YOU KNOW??

Joy, Anger, Sadness, Fear, Disgust

All these emotions hold their own importance. A fulfilled living is possible when there is a balance between these emotions. A disproportionate excess or deficit of any of these emotions is a red flag, giving the signal that you have to do something to get back to that state of equilibrium again.

WHAT IS SADNESS???

Since childhood, you would have experienced events which had happened against your expectations. Remember the time when you or your best friend changed school, your pet died, you lost your favorite toy or when you were not able to secure expected marks, you were sad. To date, you must be experiencing events that give you the same feeling.

This emotion of sadness in all these times has played a key evolutionary role; a role of signaling you that you need help or comfort in all such difficult times (by Paul Ekman). It plays an important role in the process of healthy survival.

Anything can trigger Sadness. A few of the examples are:

• ‣ Leaving some loved one
• ‣ Illness or death of someone close
• ‣ Failure
• ‣ Loss of some beloved object
• ‣ Not getting the expected

HOW TO DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN SADNESS AND DEPRESSION???

Sadness is temporary; it plays its role and subsides. However, if sadness has started governing your life, if you are feeling blue most of the time, if nothing seems to be cheering you up, if you are having persistent negative thoughts about self, the world, and your future, it is surely a red flag of depression.

The feeling of sadness along with some or all of the symptoms shown in the diagram below completes the picture of ‘Depression- A Common Mental Disorder’. As per doctors, if these symptoms persist most of the time in a day for 15 or more days continuously, then it is clearly depression.

Do you know, in some individuals, there may also be the presence of:

WHAT TO DO WHEN IT IS DEPRESSION?

WHEN SADNESS IS NO LONGER JUST AN EMOTION WHEN IT HAS BECOME YOUR LIFE,

IT’S OK TO SEEK HELP!!!!!

• ★ First, it is important to know that ‘Depression’ is a medical condition like diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease, or an ulcer, and it too requires treatment.
• ★ Psychotherapy (talk therapy) is one empirically proven treatment measure for depression. Your psychotherapist will help you identify your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors which are leading to current symptoms of depression. During this collaborative work of understanding your own self, you will also learn the different techniques of handling yourself when faced with disturbing situations and thoughts. The ultimate goal of psychotherapy is to alleviate your current symptoms and flourish your competency to deal with difficult life situations in the future.