How to Get Out of Depression

It is calculated that There are 322 million people in the world who suffer from depression., and 60 percent of these are women. The average age of onset of depression is low, around 30 years old. In Europe, 40 million people suffer from depression, 3 million in ItalyTwo out of ten people over 65, the majority of them women. Where does depression originate? In recent decades, starting in the early 1960s, specialists and researchers have focused on the chemical imbalance in the brain (primarily the lack of serotonin) and, in terms of therapy, have placed a heavy emphasis on antidepressants, used by millions of people to overcome this imbalance. One example: Prozac, which blocks the removal of serotonin from synapses, the connections between brain cells. Recent studies, such as the 2022 one from University College London, coordinated by Joanna Moncrieff, question the usefulness of antidepressants, to the point of considering them capable of producing only a placebo effect. And for several years now, the website of the Royal College of Psychiatrists of Great Britain has been describing the chemical imbalance in the brain underlying depression as "a simplistic theory."

Index of topics

Depression or sadness?

Depression, the so-called dark disease due to the many unknowns surrounding its causes and its possible evolution, in order to be well treated, must first of all be distinguished from sadness and bad mood. And now both the World Health Organization and the'American Psychiatric Association, the symptoms that allow us to differentiate the two ailments are consistent. And in particular, they distinguish depression from bad mood when:

The depressed mood and decreased interest in ordinary activities last throughout the day, and are present for a period of at least two consecutive weeks.
They are warned guilt feelings completely disproportionate to current events.
Thoughts of death or suicide accumulate.
There are changes, in a worsening sense, in sleep and appetite
Energy decreases and fatigue increases.
You get no pleasure from anything.
You have a feeling of uselessness.
Depression, unlike sadness, is relatively unrelated to traumatic life events, such as bereavement or a sudden loss.

Symptoms of depression

While new doubts are emerging about psychotropic drug therapies, it's important to note that, especially in the most severe cases, it's difficult to avoid medication to overcome depression. However, the scientific community has no doubts about its most obvious symptoms. Specifically:

Gloomy mood, even for prolonged periods. A bad mood is compounded by low energy, both physical and psychological.
Inability to experience pleasure, joy, or satisfaction from normal daily activities.
Loss of appetite and insomnia.
Fatigue, even when not making any particular effort.
Feeling tired and dejected.
Difficulty concentrating.
Suicidal thoughts.
Psychosomatic disorders.

How much depression shortens life

Depression shortens life expectancy, on average, by 10 to 14 years. This is because it significantly increases the risk of the four "big killers" of our body: cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, lung diseases, tumors.

Depression and smog

According to the results of a recent study published in Epidemiology and Psychiatric SciencesAir pollution can also be a cause of depression. In particular, ozone, one of the main pollutants, poses a risk to mental health. Depression remains, by definition, "a dark evil", the title of one of the most beautiful and profound books on the subject, the novel, partly autobiographical, by Giuseppe Berto. And in this darkness we would like an ever stronger light to pierce it, but Instead, we are forced to deal with the darkness, with those mysterious causes that drag men and women to the precipice of wasting their lives. Without any clear reason., verifiable, irrefutable, enough to make us fully understand the root of this suffering planted within our body and soul like a tree with age-old strength. The only certainty It's the pain that brings depression. Loneliness adds to loneliness. Until death. (4 thousand deaths in Italy in the last year alone), to self-destruction, to the inexplicable equation life equals tormentWhere life is truly beautiful—and this isn't a parody or a cliché—as intensely as it is hard. For everyone, and for some in a very particular way.

Depression and post-pandemic

Among the long-term side effects of the pandemic is an increase in depression, especially among younger people. The solution, which has dragged on for so long, adds to this. web isolation, social media, and video games (which affects 700 adolescents in Italy). Depression cases have increased 28 percent compared to the pre-Covid-19 period, and half of people with mental health issues are not seeking treatment.

What to do about depression

Getting out of depression is a challenge that does not only evoke medicine, scientific research, the thousand methods that accompany the various treatments, from drugs to analysis, from phototherapy to the yogaNo, overcoming depression, along a path as obscure as the illness itself, means, first and foremost, no longer being alone. And, for example, being able to talk about it, to share your suffering, without shame, without reticence, without the fear of confessing your dependence on a shrink. But so as not to be alone, before the specialist, the doctor, the expert (be careful: make sure he's not a charlatan, there are many of them around regarding depression, as there are regarding cancer), we need us. Of contact, of relationship, of closenessOf a gauntlet thrown against the wall of solitude, to knock it down, or to find a way through and cross it, perhaps with a smile.

How long should psychotherapy last?

Psychotherapy, combined when necessary with antidepressant medications, is certainly an important tool for treating this "dark disease." But how long should it last? Nowadays, partly because of a trend, many believe that psychotherapy must last a very long time, virtually forever, and should be done even when one is feeling well. Another school of thought, however, suggests pauses when the patient has overcome the acute phase and the symptoms of depression are less intense. This second school of thought is more convincing: in the absence of acute symptoms, psychotherapy can be harmful. Excessive self-absorption, in fact, increases the risk of depression. anxiety: perhaps, more than a psychotherapist, a friend with whom you can share a hobby, a sporting activity, or volunteer work can be useful

How to get out of depression