Introduction: A bitter observation
Depression is sadly shunned in our traditional societies. Yet all around us, it is doing monstrous damage. This mental disorder is characterised by persistent sadness, or by a lasting loss of the ability to feel interest or pleasure in activities that used to provide it. Let’s take a closer look at what is wrongly considered to be a flaw and what makes it a real illness.
An Incapacitating Illness
Admitting that depression is real and that it should be treated in the same way as malaria is disturbing. On closer examination, it is potentially more harmful because its symptoms are often not immediately apparent. There is a bridge between an illness whose symptoms are visible to the naked eye and an illness that cannot be seen, but which prevents you from going about your business: they are both incapacitating. On top of this, depression can lead to suicide. Many lives could have been spared if this ailment had been properly assessed.
Depression: A Stigma
In Togolese society, many people you talk to about depression will tell you that it’s an illness that doesn’t affect black people. Or that depression affects the weak-minded. In short, depression is not equated with legitimate suffering. For many, depression is a blemish that is looked down upon with contempt. After all, everyone has their share of unpleasantness. So why are some people slumped over, claiming to be depressed? Calling themselves. Put another way, they claim to be suffering.
Physical Suffering versus Depression
Suppose a friend comes to you, shivering with fever and looking glassy-eyed. You bundle her up and give her some medicine to soothe her. However, if the patient turns to this same friend to tell him that she’s not doing well, at first the friend will worry. Then he will learn that in fact the patient is in a deep depression. Her spirits are low. Her only ambition is to see it all come to an end. There’s a good chance he’ll think she’s embellishing her situation; despite the potentially alarming things she’s said.
Depression in Figures
According to WHO estimates, 3.8% of the population suffers from depression, i.e. around 280 million people worldwide. These indicators show the extent to which this disorder is ravaging society. Over 75% of people living in low- and middle-income countries receive no treatment at all.
Remember: Not Everyone has the Strength to Cope without Outside Help
Bear this in mind: some people manage very well on their own. But others need a helping hand. What is likely to destroy us mentally is all too often totally irrational for others. Our minds can be as fragile as the structures of arachnids, or as strong. It’s all a question of perspective.
Conclusion: let’s open our eyes
Depression does exist. Ignoring it doesn’t make it go away – on the contrary! The silence that surrounds it is sometimes an accomplice. We urgently need to open our eyes and put in place prevention programmes and appropriate care accessible to as many people as possible.
Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/ariane.delgado.7927
