A medical condition that makes you unhappy and anxious and often prevents you from living a normal life making one think there is no hope for the future. Depression is very common in today’s world. With pressure coming from different sides, a depressed person can suffer from symptoms such as anxiety (the feeling of being worried about something), apathy (not being interested in something and not willing to change it), general discontent, guilt, hopelessness, loss of interest or pleasure in activities, mood swings, and sadness. These symptoms could lead to one having excess sleeplessness, insomnia (not being able to sleep) or restless sleep. It could also affect the body that one suffers from excessive hunger, fatigue (very great tiredness), loss of appetite, excessive crying, irritation, social isolation, lack of concentration, slowness in activity weight gain or weight loss, repeatedly going over thoughts and the tip of it, thoughts of suicide.
While it’s generally advised to see a doctor when one experiences it, there are some that people don’t know about, and it might be too late by the time it is discovered. We’re going to discuss one of such types of depression.
SMILING DEPRESSION
There are many who know about depression or who have heard about depression but many still don’t know about smiling depression. Sometimes those experiencing it don’t know that they are having the condition smiling depression. So what really is smiling depression?
Smiling depression is a pretending depression. I call it a pretending depression because it’s aim is to mislead others to think that the person going through it is fine. On the outside, they would appear as though they are happy, but on the inside, are battling with the depression. People who experience this do not isolate themselves all the time. They are seen outside with people, going out, but when they are alone, they are a shade of themselves. They experience the symptoms of general depression. Why is it hard to spot this type of depression?
Well those who experiences smiling depression feel like
1. Expressing one’s feelings completely is like adding to the persons problem. So most times they prefer not to burden someone, thereby keeping their problems to themselves.
2. Some of them actually have the belief that nothing is wrong with them. They feel what their going through is just a rough patch and not depression.
3. Some compare themselves with others, comparing the situation others face with theirs, then having the feeling that other people face worse situations than them, so why should I feel affected. This might’ve been caused by someone who they look up to comparing them with some of their mates. Gradually they get to that habit of comparing themselves.
4. Thoughts of suicide. The moment they start thinking about how people around them would have a better life without them around.
What makes it dangerous is the threat of suicide. While many who experience depression have this thought, they don’t have the energy to follow through as they lose energy due to their loss of interest in living. Smiling depression, however, has the energy level of the person unaffected (except when the individual is alone). These individuals thus have the energy and motivation to think and act on the thought of suicide.
HOW CAN IT BE TREATED
To treat any type of depression, it's best to call a doctor. They can help using medications, psychotherapy, or even suggesting life style changes.
Steps have to be taken. The first being to talk to someone. Preferably a friend, family member, or as said before, a medical practitioner. When meeting a medical practitioner, they might ask you questions to see what could be the major cause of this depression and suggest better ways of handling them. It might be medication, or focus groups. Either way, the aim is to end your depression. As said earlier, smiling depression is a pretending depression. You need to ensure that you’re not facing this condition. Talk to someone when you’re feeling down. Pouring out your heart could help prevent smiling depression.
If you need to know more about this type of depression, you can search online for smiling depression.
Stay healthy, stay fit, stay happy.
Remember if you’re going through depression, it's not just a rough patch. TALK TO SOMEONE TODAY
