Depression, we often hear about it in life, and many people around us also have depression patients.
Depression is the second largest cause of disability globally and is set to become the second largest disease after cardiovascular disease. Moreover, in recent years, it has been increasingly trending towards younger ages.
I, the editor, suffered from severe depression 10 years ago. With the care of professional doctors, family, and my own efforts, I recovered after six months.
Here is an authoritative test for depression. If you tend to have depression, you can compare it:
Total score after adding all the results:
0-4 points: No depression: mentally healthy, keep it up.
5-10 points: Occasional depressive mood may occur:
Pay attention to adjusting your mood in time, do not allow negative emotions to continue to develop into depression. You need to find something happy to do, talk to family and friends more, release the pressure, resentment, or any negative emotions in your heart. Depression often builds up inside, releasing and venting in time can eliminate depression at an early stage.
11-20 points: Mild depression. Feeling inferior and lacking confidence, often affecting your mood, making you hesitant in doing things, unconsciously tending to think negatively, always imagining others speaking ill behind your back, or trying to interpret neutral comments as derogatory.
At this stage, you must overcome your negative emotions, think positively about everything, ignore what you dislike, have confidence in yourself. Although the world spins on without anyone, each individual is unique and irreplaceable; focus on your strengths. Engage in something you are interested in, devote yourself to it, which can shift your focus.
21-25 points: Moderate depression. At this stage, you may feel indifferent to many things, lack interest, confidence in yourself and others, suffer from insomnia and constant fatigue, often feeling empty, hopeless, and that life has no meaning.
At this point, you need to seek help from a doctor. Depression is a mental illness, not “crazy.” Many people refuse to see a doctor out of fear, which is not beneficial. Everyone can experience mental illness, so bravely confront this fact and seek solutions as a priority. Do not allow the illness to progress while drowning in it. Many postpartum mothers commit suicide due to depression, or do harmful things to their children because they or their family fail to recognize the seriousness of depression in time, or even realize they have depression.
25-30 points: Severe depression!
At this stage, you have lost confidence in life, have no hope for the future, suffer from insomnia all night, often have thoughts of suicide or self-harm, avoid contact with the outside world, isolate yourself, refuse to communicate with others, immerse yourself in your own world. Reject the care of loved ones, believing that no one can understand you, often feeling burdensome, thinking that living is torture.
If you are at this stage, please see a doctor! Antidepressants can effectively alleviate negative symptoms, combined with gradual self-adjustment. Believe that your existence is important, at least to your loved ones. Try to communicate, change your environment, engage in a sport you like, or learn a skill you’ve always wanted to but never had the chance to, rediscover your value and the joy of life.
Facing depression, we hope families can provide more care and tolerance. “Laziness” is not real, “introversion” is just a facade, impoliteness, silence, irritability, etc., all these are symptoms of depression. We hope families can reduce blame and offer more understanding and care, helping patients overcome difficulties together.
