Depression: The silent killer
After the suspected suicide of rapper Jabulani Tsambo, popularly known as HHP, depression is once again in the spotlight.
The rapper had openly struggled with depression in recent years.
Depression is a “whole-body” illness, involving your body, mood and thoughts. It affects the way you eat and sleep, the way you feel about yourself and the way you think about things.
People with depression cannot merely “pull themselves together” and get better. Without treatment, symptoms can last for weeks, months or years.
Appropriate treatment, however, can help most people who suffer from depression.
Signs of depression
- Persistent sad, or “empty” mood.
- Loss of interest or pleasure in hobbies and activities that were once enjoyed, including sex.
- Feelings of hopelessness and pessimism.
- Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, helplessness and self-reproach.
- Insomnia or hypersomnia, early morning awakening, or oversleeping.
- Appetite or weight loss or overeating and weight gain.
- Decreased energy, fatigue and feeling run down.
- Increased use of alcohol and drugs, may be associated but not a criteria for diagnosis.
- Thoughts of death or suicide; suicide attempts.
- Restlessness, irritability, hostility.
- Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions.
- Persistent physical symptoms that do not respond to treatment, such as headaches, digestive disorder and chronic pain.
- Deterioration of social relationships.
Treatment for depression can include talk therapy, medication or a combination of both. Talk therapy with a psychologist, social worker or counsellor can help you understand more about why you feel depressed, and ways to cope. Just talking about how you feel can make you feel better.
Medication is sometimes prescribed by a doctor to help you feel better.
It can take a few weeks before you feel the medicine working. Because every person’s brain is different, what works well for one person might not be good for another.
