World Mental Health Day on October 10th

World Mental Health Day (WMHD) on 10^th October 2012, is just around the corner and the theme this year is ‘Depression: A Global Crisis.’

According to the World Health Organisation, depression affects more than 350 million people worldwide. 

Just to be clear, depression is not the same as feeling low. We all know how horrible it is to feel low, and unfortunately such sad times are all a part of the journey of life. Depression, however, is a whole lot different. Depression could be described as an intense sadness that won't budge.

The most common symptoms of depression include:

• feeling anxious most of the time
• low or no self-esteem
• trouble sleeping
• tiredness
• difficulty concentrating

If someone identifies with these key symptoms, then it is best to speak to a GP as soon as possible.

It’s important to point out that help is available, depression can be overcome, and that people do recover.

The Mental Health Foundation has some excellent information resources on their website which are definitely worth a read, both by people who may be depressed and those who are concerned for someone they know. Understanding depression is certainly the first step to overcoming it.

And so, this WMH Day, let’s not only open up and talk about depression and encourage people to seek help and support, but also, through the notion of hope, let’s remove the stigma and promote the fact that many people, certainly when recovered, go on to lead very positive and meaningful lives.

Here at Mental Healthy there is a whole dossier on depression, please go to http://www.mentalhealthy.co.uk/depression to find out more.