WE Smile Magazine November 2015

Sadness and grief are feelings that
happen to everyone. It happens when
there is uncertainty or when we lose
what we love. If you think about the
situations which make you feel sad,
you will find that the usual duration
of these low periods are short. On
average, people are able to adapt
and return to their normal lives in a
matter of days or weeks. However,
for some people this sadness can
last for months or years, causing
disturbances in their day-to-day
life. For example, they are unable to
sleep, become indecisive and lack
enthusiasm. This may even lead to
suicidal tendencies. People with these
symptoms may be in depression. If
the people around them do not take
notice of the behavior, it could lead to
self-harm or worse.
Causes of Depression
It is currently believed that depression
can be caused by many factors.
These may include the following:
• It’s found that having family
members with a history of depression
can increase a person’s chances
by 2.8 times. However, having
parents with depression does not
automatically mean the child will
suffer from it.
• Neurotransmitters in people with
depression are unable to work
properly, especially in the case of
emotional control and emotional
expression.
• Having natural personality traits
such as low self-esteem, inability to
cope with stress or problems, and
being unable to express emotions
even in situations where emotions
should be expressed.
• Stressful events such as the loss of
someone close, chronic illnesses or
traumatic events in childhood.
• Physical illness and the use of
medication, such as stroke or
Parkinson’s disease.
Symptoms of Depression
Depression affects one’s feelings,
thoughts, behavior and physical
health at the same time. If you
suspect that someone close to you
is depressed, try observing these
various aspects. The change should
usually happen over two consecutive
weeks or more. Sufferers may
have feelings of sadness, irritability,
hopelessness, guilt, or worthlessness.
They may make bad decisions, get
distracted easily or think of death
often. They may also seem unafraid
of death in general. In addition,
sufferers isolate themselves, have
weaker performance in work or
school, try to hurt themselves, may
look fatigued or have a change in
weight (loss or gain), and have sleep
disorders such as insomnia. If you
suspect yourself or someone close to
you of having depression you can do
a self test from the following wesbites:
(suicidethai.com) for Thai language
or (depression.org.nz/depression/
self+test) for English.
Guidelines for Treatment
Depression can be cured with
sufferers returning back to normal
life. When someone close to you
is going through depression, it is
best to help them seek consultation
from a psychologist or psychiatrist.
In addition to medical treatment,
understanding and encouragement
from those around them is equally
important. Friends and family can
help by listening and recognizing the
issues, hearing out their thoughts
can help immensely. Even if it
seems only a trivial matter, those
who are depressed may find this
one of the most difficult problems
to solve because the disease affects
your ability to think. You can
help someone with depression by
persuading them to do things that
interest them or attend social events
to help clear their minds.
• ข้อมูลจากองค์การอนามัยโลก (WHO)
พบว่า คนทั่วโลกกว่า 400 ล้านคนต้อง
เผชิญกับโรคซึมเศร้า
• ผู้หญิงเป็นโรคซึมเศร้ามากกว่าผู้ชาย
• โรคซึมเศร้าสามารถนำาไปสู่การฆ่าตัวตาย
• รายงานอัตราการฆ่าตัวตายของ
ประเทศไทย ตั้งแต่ ปี 2540-2557 จาก
โครงการช่วยเหลือผู้ที่เสี่ยงต่อการฆ่าตัวตาย
และป้องกันผู้มีภาวะซึมเศร้า พบว่าผู้ชาย
จะฆ่าตัวตายสำาเร็จมากกว่าผู้หญิง
• กรมสุขภาพจิตกำาหนดให้มีทศวรรษ
การป้องกันและแก้ไขโรคซึมเศร้าที่เกิดขึ้น
ในคนไทย ตั้งแต่ ปี 2552-2563
Data from the World Health
Organisation (WHO) found that more
than 400 million people worldwide
face depression. Depression can
lead to suicide with reported rates
of suicide since 1997-2014 show
that men are more likely to complete
suicide than women. The department
of Mental Health in Thailand has
set a decade to focus on preventing
suicide from 2009 - 2020.