About 1.5 million people suffer from depression in Poland. Some of them are not aware of it, and many hide their condition, being ashamed of their surroundings. That is why people struggling with this disease often visit specialists too late.
We talk toHubert Kowalczys, psychiatrist , consultant at the Clinical Hospital of the Medical Academy in Warsaw, about the fact that depression is often not recognized, misunderstood and poorly treated.
- Depression makes the joy of life fade, the future sinks into darkness and the past appears as a series of failures. It is accompanied by depression, despair and fear. What others feel like a chafing of the epidermis is a bloody wound for sufferers. Why are more and more people suffering from depression?
Depression is caused not only by tragic events; loss of a loved one, job, illness, but also ordinary everyday life, which makes us increasingly demanding. We cannot cope with the excess of stress and responsibilities. There is a growing belief that we are failing to prove ourselves, we have a sense of loneliness, emotional emptiness and fear. Depression doesn't choose skin color, gender, age, or place of residence. It can touch anyone.
- And yet depression has a liking to women. They get sick three times more often than men.
Men are able to forget about unpleasant events faster, they don't carry them inside for too long. Everyone wants to be macho, because that is how they were coded, so it is difficult for them to admit to suffering and weakness. So they mask depression, drown sadness in alcohol, and as a result they commitsuicidemore often than women. Hormonal fluctuations are responsible for the susceptibility of women to depression. They make women more prone to depression when they reach puberty. Depression occurs during hormonal breakthroughs: just before menstruation, in the postpartum, premenopausal and menopausal periods. Male menopause (andropause) is less intense and lasts longer.
- Depression is also called an affective disorder …
Because it's a mood disease and mood is affect. We doctors call those who only suffer from depression unipolar. Bipolar people also suffer frommania . It is a state in which, after a period of depression and sadness, euphoria suddenly appears,one feels like drinking champagne. In depression, the sick person thinks about himself: I'm good for nothing, I can't do anything. He is proud of his mania: I'm great, I can do everything.
- Is it better to be mania than depressed?
Both depression and mania can destroy a person's life. People suffering from depression often irritate those around them with their apathy. It is difficult to deal with a person suffering from mania for another reason - he knows everything best, is conflicting, aggressive, his behavior is often surprising and shocking. He can suddenly spend the savings he has accumulated over the years, get into strange love affairs, and whimper the boss. As the disease passes over time, he cannot believe that he himself has mixed up so much in his own life. Eight percent of divorces occur in relationships where one of the partners is depressed, but where mania is intertwined with depression, 57 percent. Men suffer from mania more often.
Check: Test: are you depressed?
- Do you know what causes suffering?
The biochemistry of the brain fails in patients. There are disorders of neurotransmitters: serotonin responsible for a good mood, norepinephrine which gives us a vital drive and dopamine which gives us the feeling of pleasure. We do not know why this is so. In depression, loneliness is tragic. The environment does not understand the sick person, because "he is fine." The patient hears most often: "Get a grip", "Mobilize", "Take care of something". It is impossible to meet these demands, so feelings of guilt and isolation increase. He "sinks" into himself even more, and there only overwhelming fear and sadness awaits him. When depression is mild, the patient can work and function normally, deep - paralyzes him and excludes him from life. Because is it possible to dance rock with broken legs? Not. Likewise, a depressed person cannot be "viable". After all, every activity requires a lot of effort from her, it is like climbing Mount Everest. Depression cannot be cured by willpower or character. It is a suffering of soul and body that is difficult to describe in words.
- Many patients do not see a specialist at all, and in others, even if they do, the doctor does not recognize depression.
Well, people generally don't know what's wrong with them. If they already decide to see a doctor, the most common complaints are headaches, prickling, insomnia, lack of appetite, and anxiety. And doctors often treat symptoms instead of the disease and prescribe sedatives or sleeping pills. The most common benzodiazepines, which are systematically taken and improperly dosed, are addictive. This is the case, for example, with relanium, xanax, lorafen. Their sudden withdrawal threatens the "teamabstinence ". The ailments that have been suppressed by the drug so far return with redoubled strength. There are symptoms typical of hunger: convulsions, headaches, vomiting. It happens that such "treatment" sometimes ends tragically. Now there are more and more very good drugs for depression, but they need to be selected individually, taking into account the patient's condition. Until recently, Prozac was treated as a panacea. However, this luck pill caused a lot of confusion. It is not a drug for everyone, it has side effects and numerous contraindications to use.
- Can only a pill help a sick person? And psychotherapy?
Word, talking to another person works miracles, but in deep depression it is dangerous to use only the advice of a psychotherapist. On the other hand, he can effectively help in overcoming depression, when a person wakes up to life and realizes that he has lost his job due to illness, his marriage is failing, and it is difficult for him to function with low self-esteem. Psychotherapy supports, but does not heal.
- Many people suffer from seasonal depression. Some people suffer from depression in the fall, others in winter, and they also attack in spring and summer. Why?
In winter and autumn, when the day is short and there is no sun, we fall into such a winter sleep. Some feel tired, sleepy, apathetic, and their intellect is impaired. It would seem that when spring or summer comes, the day gets longer and the sun shines, depression should not affect us. And yet, in spite of nature, we get sick. The sudden outburst of nature causes that man cannot keep up with it. He lags behind, starts having trouble with his mood. We do not know why this is so. This is another mystery of depression. Both an Italian and an Eskimo can get sick with it.
- We all have bad days. How do you know when you feel unwell and become sick?
When a depressed mood begins to disturb our lives, and everyday life resembles an obstacle course, you should immediately visit a psychiatrist. Depression is dangerous.