The COVID-19 epidemic that has lasted for nearly three years has added a new burden to the public's psychological illness. Data shows that under the epidemic, one-third of people in China are quarantined at home have symptoms such as depression, anxiety, insomnia, and the incidence of patients with depression and anxiety disorders has increased year by year. In particular, , depression , is called the "silent killer", and should be taken seriously.
October 10 is World Mental Health Day . Benliu News reporter interviewed Chen Linqing, former director and chief physician of the Affiliated Hospital of Gansu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Li Xiaoying, former director of the Department of Brain at Lanzhou Third People's Hospital, and talked about depression together.
Emotional depression does not mean depression
"In the eyes of most people, people with depression should be listless, emotionally depressed, unable to get interested in anything, and are frowning and depressed all day long. This is a generalized stereotype . In fact, each depression patient has different levels of , some are mild and severe, some are laughing in front of outsiders, but they are very inferior in their hearts; some will have symptoms such as alcoholism, eating disorders, panic or anxiety; some people also have a certain tendency to attack, throwing and beating randomly, which can also hurt themselves." The symptoms of depression patients Chen Linqing encountered during the consultation have different symptoms, but almost no one thinks they have mental illness.
Chen Linqing told reporters that in the past two years, the number of patients with depression has increased significantly. "The age range covers different age groups such as the elderly, middle-aged and young people, especially the trend of younger children. The youngest children are less than 10 years old."
Will people with depression suffer from depression? The answer is no. Chen Linqing said that depression is only considered depression when the state of depression is very serious, lasts for two weeks or more, and affects normal function at home and work. "Not all people with depression may suffer from depression."
"Usual People" is a negative definition of
Depression is also called "the cold of the mind". This "cold" can be caused by brain changes, or it may be inherited by family. Some painful experiences in life can also cause depression.
"From a clinical perspective, some depression patients are prone to disguise their emotions and are difficult to detect, so it is necessary to judge depression from multiple aspects." Li Xiaoying said that from the perspective of unhappiness, there is a difference between depression patients and ordinary people's unhappiness. "Most of ordinary people's unhappiness is very short-lived, but depression patients will continue to be in a low mood, distressed, and depressed manner."
Depressive patients are prone to denying themselves. "Hopeless" and "useless people" are their negative definitions of themselves. They always feel that they have no hope, low learning and work efficiency, uselessness, and are inferior to others in everything. They are also very sensitive, inferior and self-blame. It is also easy to take responsibility for some wrong things on yourself, thinking that it is your fault, and I am sorry to the people around you and my parents and relatives.
Depressed patients are not excited about anything, and even if they participate in some activities, they cannot feel happy. Lack of social activities, thinking and reaction becomes dull. Often, my thinking is not flexible enough, my head is like a rusty machine, and it is difficult to understand and think about problems in learning. I speak slowly and think slowly, and my memory will also decrease. Some children are not in a state of mind when studying, can’t remember things, and can’t even complete very simple questions.
Another obvious symptom is sleep disorder . The common thing is that you wake up early, 1-2 hours earlier than usual. It is difficult to fall asleep after waking up, it is difficult to fall asleep at night, it is not sleeping deeply at night, it is tired and weak, appetite loss, weight loss, and may also experience symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, palpitations, chest tightness and sweating. In terms of behavior, they will show laziness at home, ignorance, and temper tantrums.
"Once the above similar symptoms occur, you must pay attention to it." Li Xiaoying said that when the depression is serious and lasts for a long time and cannot be improved and relieved through self-debugging, you must seek medical attention. At present, the most important intervention method for depression is drug treatment, and psychological treatment and physical therapy can also be carried out.
The probability of suicide among patients with depression is as high as 1/7
In recent years, the population of depression has been expanding. The results of in 2020 in my country's epidemiological survey showed that the lifelong prevalence of depression was 6.8%, and the number of people with depression reached nearly 100 million. About 280,000 people commit suicide every year in my country, of which 40% of people with depression account for.
"The suicide rate and self-harm rate of depression patients are very high. It is already the most serious disease that endangers human health in the world and one of the most serious diseases that cause disability and disease burden." Statistics show that the probability of suicide among depression patients is as high as about 1/7.
"Suffering from depression will not become a lifelong disease and can be treated." Chen Linqing said that in severe depression, there may be a risk of self-injury or suicide, and intervention must be used to alleviate the depression state.
How to prevent and relieve depression?
1. Express emotions. Tell me about someone you trust and express your worries and voices. If you are unwilling to talk to others, you can also express your emotions by writing diaries, drawing, etc.;
2. Reasonable venting. Allow yourself to shout or cry. Crying is an effective way to relieve depression;
3. Lower your goals. Depressed people have a strong sense of lack, often suffer from their own imperfection, and are emotionally capricious and highly sensitive. You must learn not to set goals that are difficult to achieve for yourself. Thinking can change the state of mind. Maintaining an optimistic and contented attitude can avoid many bad emotions;
4. Take action. Depressed people like to stay in a closed space and are unwilling to "go out". We must change our mood and strive to get out of this closed space, go outside to feel the sunshine and the scenery of nature. Take a trip that you can go on, or have a refreshing exercise;
5. Regular work and rest. Develop good living habits, maintain regular schedules and balanced nutrition; 6. Listen more music. Music can adjust the functions of nervous system , relieve muscle tension, eliminate fatigue, improve attention, enhance memory, and eliminate adverse emotions such as depression, anxiety, and tension.
Chen Linqing advises that patients with depression should not be alone, try to go to places with a large number of people, find something they like to divert their attention, and do not keep getting stuck in personal emotions. At the same time, family companionship and emotional care are also very important, allowing patients to rely on warmly.
text丨Benliu News reporter Ouyang Haijie
