People usually confuse depression with feelings such as loneliness, sadness or misery. Depression is not similar to feeling down or to be sad. Although they are symptoms of depression, but it is much more severe. We experience these normal emotions (sadness, frustration, anger, guilt) as a response to life events. They last for a few hours, days or even for a week but not more than that. Where as symptoms of depression lasts for months or even years. Depression is a serious mental health disorder which disrupts a person’s life. If one is feeling at least 5 of the symptoms of depression such as low mood, loss of interest in everything, feeling of worthlessness and excessive guilt, restlessness or tiredness, recurrent feelings and thoughts of suicide and death, disturbed sleep (too little or too much), loss or increase in appetite, change in body weight, inability to think clearly, agitation, loss of energy, greatly slowed behaviour, for at least two consecutive weeks, then it will be characterized as depression.
The symptoms, causes and experience of depression is different for every individual. Even though the the experience varies from person to person, there are some experiences which are common to all.
Some people feel like there is no Joy left in their life. He or she may not enjoy the things that once give them pleasure. They face difficulty in making decisions, reading or even watching movies or series (they may not understand what is going on in it). They not able to concentrate or focus on anything. This may even strain their work and relationship.
Some feel devoid of hope and happiness, like there’s nothing left. Depression make people feel like there’s no way left to make them feel better again. They may feel worthless and useless, like a complete failure. The main find negativity in every event and are unable to see positive qualities in themselves. Some people feel so exhausted that even getting out of bed seems impossible. The feel drained even after getting enough sleep. For some people it’s impossible even to sleep.
Although, some people with depression don’t feel like eating anything, others can’t stay away from it. They overeat and keep on craving for unhealthy food. For some depression feels like they are living in a state of fear and grief, but there is no origin of these feelings. Sometimes they may feel like screaming and crying out loud and sometimes they feel like they can never speak again. In depression you feel like a half alive ghost. You don’t feel like a normal living thing. Some even become suicidal, thinking of death as an escape.
Dealing with depression is something terrible, if you ask those who have experienced it. Sometimes you feel like talking to people and share what you are experiencing, but the fear of being judged stops you from doing that. This creates a feeling of suffocation. You feel like people will laugh at you or may not understand you, so you think that it’s better to be quiet and suffer alone. It’s okay to have such fears and it is important to know that you are not alone. For situations like these, you can even take help of apps. There is an app called WeHeal.
It is a social application, which has an intention to help people heal, just like the name suggests. It is an anonymous chat platform, we can discuss what ever is troubling you. The healers who are basically the uses of the app, will listen to you, understand you and help you with your situation. Since you are anonymous, it will become easier for you to say what ever you want to, share everything you are experiencing, without the fear of being judged. You can confess anything that is killing you inside or ask anything regarding to issues related to studies, career, relationships, heartbreak or any other problem. It’s really not healthy to keep things inside you. Sharing our feelings and emotions is one of the most important thing which helps in preventing stress and fighting depression. There is nothing wrong in asking for help. There is nothing to be ashamed of in sharing your feelings which can trigger depression or make it worse. Sharing emotions help us to restore equilibrium and to let go of negative emotions that bottles up inside us and cause more harm to us.
It’s important to let your emotions out and this app may help you in that.
You can download WeHeal – https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.weheal.weheal
There are also three inbuilt features which provide you with meditation sessions, psychological quiz that will detect your mood, and a mini game to improve your patience level. There are also short inspirational stories, quotes and experiences written by the users which may encourage you.
Normal people also feel sad and lonely, not to the extent that a depressed person feels but yes they do. The app is there with you. It also gives you the opportunity to help other people who are facing troubles by replying to them and providing solutions to their issues with the help of our experience. Research shows that helping others and making others happy, gives more pleasure and boosts mood. It’s sad that inspite of such terrible experiences, depression is not taken seriously. It’s time to normalise it and make it easier for the person who is actually going through it. Timely treatment is required, but just because of the stigmas and judgements attached to it, people don’t come out and share it. The WeHeal app has initiated a great service for normalising mental health issues.
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