When Nigerians get depressed (Part4: Challenges) Following Hive stories
Depression vector created by pch.vector - www.freepik.com and Inkscape.org
Chronic disease is one of the leading causes of depression. The person worries for his or her life.
When Nigerians suffer from depression, it is typically a woman who has just given birth. She has just given birth to a daughter, despite the fact that male births are preferred. She has just given birth and is currently experiencing postpartum depression.
When domestic violence occurs a Nigerian gets depressed; a battered woman stays in the relationship owing to her cultural background.
Hello Everyone, My name is Ebingo Kigigha and I'm an aspiring Psychiatrist. When I'm not joking around, I usually write about Mental Health on my blog. I will be discussing the challenges of dealing with depression for Nigerians.
People with depression have compared their condition to "living in the dark" and "anticipating terrible uncontrollable situations." Depression affects a person's thoughts, emotions, and daily functioning. The risk that you have depression rises as the frequency, severity, and duration of your symptoms increase. There are several symptoms and signs of depression that we might observe in ourselves and others. Depression is a significant suicide risk factor.
When a depressed person raises concerns about a possible threat to their life, this should be taken very seriously. Intervention and aid could perhaps save their lives.
After reading a article regarding depression in Nigeria, I decided to write about When Nigerians Get Depressed.
Depression, a mental health issue that has claimed countless lives, affects 322 million people worldwide.
Symptoms include a melancholy disposition, loss of interest or pleasure, lower energy, feelings of guilt (especially related to a need to live) or poor self-esteem, disturbed sleep or eating, and difficulties focusing. Moreover, it inhibits a person's ability to function and do daily tasks, and can even lead to suicide.
In the previous post, We talked about the difficulty people have in getting the help they need for mental health issues
In continuation of the theme, I want to bring to light how difficult it will be to deal with these problems.
Challenges dealing with depression
Inkscape.org
Depression has been linked to both problems with one's finances and with issues in one's social life. It is expected that the incidence of depression among Nigerians would continue to increase as a result of the country's high poverty rate as well as the ongoing challenges that Nigerians must overcome on a daily basis.
Currently, it is well known that about half of Nigeria's population is dealing with poverty. Many expect things to get worse if intervention by the government does not take place.
When an individual seeks out and utilizes mental health services, they often face a variety of problems. Some of these challenges include stigma and a lack of available mental health care. According to the findings of a study conducted at a health care facility in Benin City, the majority of the practitioners working there have a poor understanding of depression, and 78 per cent of them report having difficulties interacting with depressed patients.
I guess you can say that I'm taking a bold early step to wrap my mind around the topic.
Another aspect of stigma comes from the medical community itself. Many people have reservations about psychiatrists. When I told some of my seniors I was going to choose psychiatry, they joked about how there is a peculiarity about the practitioners.
It is essential that we confront these problems and acknowledge that depression is a serious disease in order to stop the inevitable consequences that will follow.
Tips
Yesterday, we looked at how food could play a big part in helping to manage depression. Today I want to discuss sleep and depression.
Just like food, when a person gets depressed, our appetite for sleep changes too. More commonly, people suffer from insomnia (having difficulty sleeping), others will have obstructive sleep apnea (difficulty breathing while asleep leading to oxidative stress) and a few can have hypersomnia.
Many studies have found that optimal sleep time is between 6 to 8 hours a day.
Keep a regular bedtime and wake time, which gives your body the opportunity to begin winding down and prime itself for sleep.
A quick nap can help regulate our emotions, reduce sleepiness and improve performance. Naps that last longer than 20 minutes could interfere with your ability to fall asleep, while if its shorter than 10 minutes just isn't long enough.
When we get regular sunlight, it is a signal to our body to be alert and active. As the sun sets, our bodies then produce melatonin to induce sleepiness and promote sleep. Regular exercise has been shown to significantly decrease symptoms of depression, making it an excellent choice to promote sleep health and mental health.
Even moderate drinking is enough to disrupt your sleep cycle and shorten REM sleep. Binge-drinking before bed can lead to difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep.
There are several different kinds of therapy to help you cope with depression and change your thinking about sleep. Mental health professionals can suggest concrete behavioural changes to mitigate some of the symptoms of depression as well as give you coping mechanisms to manage restless, sleepless nights. Talk to a therapist.
Hive Stories
I think We are getting a lead on those stories. One person wrote back to me but she didn't quite understand my initial message. I really want to make this out thing here on Medic vibes where er discuss stories like this. I know we'll get good response soon enough.
Questions
- What are some policies that could be put into place to help deal with this problem?
- How would you help a friend to stop drinking especially one dealing with depression?
- How can we stop the social stigma around depression?
Get my merch...Just send me a message here so we can start working on it.
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The situation here in Nigeria could possibly make one depressed i've come across people we barely have good 3 square meal not to mention source of income which is very low.
You have made a good point on why depression is on an alarming rate here am glad you are taking good step of tackling this problem by aspiring to become a psychiatrist all the best mate.
It has become so normal to see kids begging on the streets. Everyday on my way to work it a different face and many are drawn to different anti-social behaviours if nothing gets better.
I hope I can make a difference. But I'm just one person that's why I hope my work reaches more and they can help make that change.
Change starts with us we can make a difference.
Very true