Mental Health Is Important.

"What Mental Health Needs Is More Sunlight, More Candor, And More Unshamed Conversation."   - Glenn Close, Actress

Bollywood actor, Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead in his house, allegedly due to hanging himself. As his close ones said, he was in depression and was under therapy and this triggered him to take this step. I don't know what exactly happened, because loads of rumors are doing their rounds on the internet and the news media channels are totally on a different track. This again, feels like a personal loss and I won't drag the topic. But, if depression is the case, we all can learn something from this incident- One's mental well-being is utmost important and it needs to be on focus in this trying times!

Mental Health is a person's psychological well-being. Mental Health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects and effects how we think, feel and react. It also determines, how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. 

One in every six people in India suffers from some form of mental illness or depression. Mental health is important in every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood to old age. Depression is the most common kind of mental disorder. World Health Organization (WHO) reports, it is the leading cause of disability worldwide ans it adds to a major contribution to the overall burden of disease.

Depending on the severity of symptoms, depression can be categorized as- mild, moderate and severe. Remember, person of any age after 14 years need to focus on their mental health, because that is when our emotional and behavioural changes take place, starting of the adolescence period. Any person can go through it, without any slight awareness about it himself. 

There are number of factors that can cause depression-

• Genetics- A family history of depression can increase the risk.
• Abuse- Physical, emotional and sexual abuse can cause clinical depression.
• Conflicts- One maybe vulnerable to depression if he/she is having constant conflicts with friends or family.
• Medications- Intake of some drugs like, isotretinoin (used to cure acne) can cause depression.
• Death or loss of something- Sadness or grief, due to death or because of losing something important in life can increase risk of depression.
• Social Isolation- These is also considered as a symptom for a person going through depression. But, at the causes front, if a person is cast out of a social group or his/her family can be in depression. 

Symptoms that indicate a person being in depression-

• Avoiding social gatherings- Some people with depression will not want to leave his/her home. Not being able to go to a social gathering due to being avoided their or being casted out of it can also increase the risk of depression. For some, it is low self-esteem, for other is never-ending fatigue. But, a person will avoid a get together.
• Feeling guilty all the time- Guilt is a perfectly normal feeling to experience. If you do something you regret, then guilt will follow. But, guilt over everything and over nothing can be a symptom of depression. The patient will feel as if he/she is doing all the ills in the world. The person will feel guilty for not being able to help a person who is a victim of a natural disaster or a person who has had a natural death. It makes that think that they are worthless.
• Sleeping all day long- A person vulnerable to depression will find it difficult not to sleep during the day. A average person needs eight-hours of sleep at night to work all day. But, a person who is in depression will sleep 8-9 hours at night and will still want to get a nap, because he/she will feel sleepy and tired all day long.
• Lack of good hygiene- A person suffering from depression won't like to bath, brush their teeth, do their hair, or even change their clothes, for weeks even, until he is out of it. It does sound gross, but this is what depression can do. It takes a toll on everything.
• Being convinced that everyone hates you- Depression is like a devil sitting on your shoulders, it will continuously whisper in your ears until one hates himself and gets convinced that everyone also hates them. The perception of being hated by everyone will make them feel even more depressed! 

Some ways to cure depression-

• Meditation- Meditation is hands down one of the best ways to cure depression. I try and do it on a regular basis for at least 5 minutes, what I do is- Just sit down on the floor on a mat, with a straight posture, and what you do is just breathe in and out and sharply concentrate on your breathing and let all your thoughts cross your mind, just don't engage your mind in it. Start doing it for 5 minutes in the morning and then increase 5 minutes every month until you are doing it for 20 minutes. It will help you two thing- Firstly, It will keep your mind calm all day long and prevent extreme emotions, Secondly, It will help you with your breathing problems. 
• Regular exercise- Exercise regularly and eat healthy, because it improves blood circulation which aids in the recovering process significantly.
• Reach out for help- Your family and your friends are the best therapists you can get, talk to them, express your feelings, it will be a great relieve to speak about your problems. And you should also be compassionate about your people, you should love them, and help them if they are in this situation without telling them things like- You are weak, You are acting, Depression is nothing, etc, etc. Be nice, think before you speak, they need love and someone to confide in.
• Attend talk therapy and counseling- Once you start seeing above mentioned symptoms, take the person to a well-known therapist. The person should talk to their therapist and councilor regularly. Attending talk-therapy and counseling could help you get out of it systematically and rapidly. Do take your medicines and anti-depressants as prescribed by the therapists.

I can at least guarantee that if you are given full treatment, are looked upon with care and love and you have someone to talk to, you will definitely get out of depression, with a different and positively evolved personality! I have some live examples before me. There is a whole new life after that, and hurting yourself is not a way out!

Now, just remember that you have to cherish and protect your loved ones, keep a check on them, help them, be compassionate. 

Share this with your loved ones, and please take care of your mental health.

Comment down below, if you have some suggestions to cope up with these difficult situations!