Addictions

“We, the depressed, in our darkest hours have no energy to move, no reason to live, no will to survive, no hope in a cure, no reason to try. We roam the earth as the living dead wanting only to extinguish that persistent heart that beats, that ceaseless breath that enters, that pain that never relents. Every cell of our being wants to die, yet do we live.” (Melody Clark.)

A sustained period of time when one experiences melancholy feelings and negative moods is known as clinical depression. Depression is a mysterious disease. It creeps into people’s minds of all ages and race, turning one’s hopes and thoughts bleak and gray. When a happy future seems unattainable and life feels as if it is beyond enjoyment, far too many depressed people choose to carry out the unthinkable; take their own lives.

People who feel sad for extended periods of time often expect to “snap out of it.” Life’s stresses often bring depressive states upon people. However, most people are able to get over their “blues” in a week or two. If feelings prolonged more than that, one should visit a physician to see if they are affected by mild or severe depression.

It used to be thought that only adults were affected by depression. However, depression is present in every age, race, and sex–although it seems to be predominant in females. In a population of 100,000, one hundred and forty men and 4,000 women are affected (Britannica, 847.) Lack of control over one’s emotions is often viewed as a weakness, especially in men. The figure above may be distorted because it is estimated that more women than men seek help.

Young children who are depressed may perform poorly in school and complain of constant headaches and poor appetites. Depression in teenagers is on the rise, as is the teen suicide rate. Teenagers who rebel, threat, and constantly argue (to an extent beyond what is normal for this age group) may show evidence of having underlying depression. Depression is more common in middle-age people who see that their youth is fading and sometimes begin to feel worthless. Elderly people are possibly the most susceptible to the disease. Unfortunately, a common consensus seems to be that the elderly are depressed because they are old and senile.

A number of aspects are blamed for the onset of depression. Environmental factors, such as the loss of a loved one or a job, may initiate the depressive state. Some people are merely more prone to the disease because of the way they think. People who are pessimists with low self-esteem are more at risk than those with a positive self-image. It has also been shown that depression may be passed on genetically. Identical twins have a 50-90% chance of developing the disorder if their twin sibling is affected by it. Biochemical factors may be another cause of depression. Evidence shows that brain chemistry significantly affects mood extremes. Lack of or excessive amounts of certain chemicals can alter our behavior, take away our happiness, or even create a different personality.

Although experts have linked all of the above factors with depression, the illness tends to result from a combination of them. The disease can also be brought on by events such as a loss of a parent or a number of other childhood traumas. Children who were well nurtured in their first years of life seem to have less chance of getting depressed.

Depression also seems to have links with people’s personalities. For example, creative people such as poets, artists, or musicians have a higher tendency of developing the disorder. Also, people who are overly conscientious or self-sacrificing are more apt of developing the disorder. These people are afraid to express anger because they are afraid of making others angry or getting rejected. Hoarded up feelings of anger may be contributing factors to depression.

The list of symptoms of depression is quite lengthy; it varies from person to person. Depressed people seem to awaken rather early, and the gloomy feelings are most intense during the morning. The depressed carry with them a sad, hopeless mood. They feel pessimistic and lose interest in activities they use to enjoy. Victims may feel lethargic and lack liveliness. They cannot think positively or respond to motivation. Minimal energy, slow thought processes, and sluggish actions are also discouraging symptoms of depression. Appetite and sleep patterns are affected as well.

Depression brings sensitive, miserable, upset, negative, tired, angry and suicidal feelings. The most deadly symptoms of depression are the suicidal thoughts that often accompany the illness. Many depressed people begin to wonder what reasons they have to live. They feel that others would be better off if they were dead. Depression is a disease like cancer or heart disease; it kills people.

Suicide is the most severe outcome of depression. An estimated fifteen percent of depressed people eventually commit suicide. (Olshan, 73.) Suicide is currently the ninth leading cause of death in the United States according to the National Center for Health Statistics. Sadly, a suicide is completed every twenty-six minutes. (Olshan, 76.)

Fifty years ago, adolescents were dying from natural causes. Now, youth are choosing more and more to take their own lives. Adolescent suicide rates have risen worldwide and are still on the rise. Since 1950, the suicide rate among American teenagers has tripled. Not all, but a vast majority of these deaths appear to be due to the depression the individual was undergoing. Adolescents have reported that depression accompanied by alcohol abuse or conduct problems was more likely to result in suicide than depression alone. Suicide is the third leading cause of death among people aged 15-24. Adolescent suicides affect the victim’s family, community, and peers.

Adults with a depressive disorder are thirty times more likely to commit suicide than healthy individuals. Hopelessness and despair overwhelm people, leaving them feeling alone and vulnerable. Drug or alcohol addictions along with other mental illnesses add to the risk of suicide.

Older Americans (65+) comprise only 13% of the population yet they accounted for 19% of all suicide deaths in 1997. (nimh 1) Approximately 6% of this age group is said to have diagnosable depression. Depression in the elderly is even more drastically under treated than other age categories. Attitudes have seemed to emerge that depression in the elderly is common.

Physicians have difficulty diagnosing and treating depressed patients. Depression often goes unrecognized. Of depressed older adults, 20% visited their doctor the day they committed suicide, 40% within a week of the suicide, and 70% within the month. (Nimh 1.) Symptoms are difficult to pinpoint because most people experience them at some point or another: unhappiness, low self-esteem, over sensitivity, and difficulty getting along with others seem hardly adequate grounds to diagnose someone with depression. Most depressed people don’t think they are ill, making the process even more difficult. In addition, depressed people simply may not have the energy or willingness to get help.

People with suicidal tendencies require immediate attention. Hospitalization is usually called for to save a life. Extreme caution must be taken when treating suicidal individuals. Some individuals may expect immediate results and become frustrated when they do not experience any difference for approximately fourteen days. Others may acquire the energy they need from the drugs to carry out their suicidal plans. Still others go off the drugs as soon as they feel better and go soaring into a deep relapse of the illness; relapses of the disease are known for hosting the highest suicide rates. People are most prone to suicide after a week or two of antidepressant treatment. Doctors use antidepressant drugs, psychotherapy, and electro convulsive therapy to treat sufferers.

Depression is traumatic for any individual to experience. People need to realize that nowadays there is plenty of help available; they just have to be willing to seek it. Peers and relatives must aptly report any noticeable suicidal behaviors in friends or family members.

“..But you just don’t see anything helping so why bother? Why can’t this pain just go away? Why can’t you just die, cease, end, just disappear, into your sorrow, your tears? But there is no end to the pain, no matter which way you think, think of living, think of dying, pain each side, pain each way. I understand now that the pain was preventing my life yet stopping my death…It was only at my worst that the pain stopped me and made me choose for that moment: do something to live or do something to die. Finding no escape I was forced to find a treatment or die; both equally difficult tasks. I realized it takes just as much or more energy and pain to do what it really takes to commit suicide as it does to start on treatment. Each one of us will have to find some kind of speck of will to make some kind of movement toward a cure. Yes, let’s call it that, a cure.” (Adapted from Till There Was You by Depressionandsuicide.com.)