Depression Epidemic

Hannah Baskin
English Comp II 
Prof Hammet 
Oct 10, 2023 
Essay 1 
Word Count: 1019

Depression Epidemic
Depression accounts for nearly 40,000 cases of suicide each year in the United States. Depression is a mental state that brings on extreme feelings of sadness, loneliness, hopelessness, and emptiness. People with depression may consider death or suicide as an escape. It also develops anxiety or creates physical symptoms such as fatigue or headaches. Out of the eight billion people on earth, 280 million people suffer from depression. More than half of those people are women. COVID-19 worsened people's mental health. Depression is a disorder that lingers. It feels like you will never be able to escape the mental distress and once one does, they now have the fear of it coming back worse. Although depression will never truly be eradicated it can be softened. There are things people can do to help with the mental state they are in. To do that one has to dig deep down to the root of the problems and find what mostly causes depression. Things that are usually the cause are stressful situations, medical conditions, social media, and genetics (Clevland Clinic Medical Professionals). Next is finding out how to deal with it. There are medications people can use and many other non-medical remedies. Depression makes one feel like it will never get better but with enough help, it can get better. 
Many things can cause depression but one of them is social media. Social media has become more popular every day. Posting on Instagram, snap chatting with your friends, scrolling on TikTok, tweeting on Twitter, and looking through your aunt's vacation posts on Facebook are all enjoyable things to do. On the other side, getting cyberbullied or comparing yourself to other people you see online is not so enjoyable. With all the fun things social media brings, negative aspects come with that. “Research suggests that people who limit their time on social media tend to be happier than those who don’t. Studies also indicate that social media may trigger an array of negative emotions in users that contribute to or worsen their depression symptoms.” (Nittle) Spending excessive time on social media can easily cause depression in teenagers. This issue is a simple fix. The amount of time on the internet can be limited. It may be hard for some people but even deleting the apps would have a tremendous effect on the mind. 
Two more things that can cause depression are stressful life events and medical conditions. Difficult experiences, such as the death of a loved one, trauma, abuse, relationship problems, isolation, stress, and lack of support, can trigger depression (Clevland Clinic Medical Professionals). School can make teens feel depressed. Staying on top of your work and engaging can help those feelings. For people with clinical depression, it will take more than just becoming organized and neat to improve their mental state. This is where psychotherapy comes into play. Psychotherapy or talk therapy involves talking with a mental health professional. The therapist will help one identify and change destructive and unhealthy emotions, thoughts, and behaviors. People with medical conditions such as chronic illness and diabetes (Clevland Clinic Medical Professionals) tend to become depressed from extreme feelings of hopelessness. Getting help with therapy can relieve hopeless thoughts.
As crazy as it seems, genetics can be a cause of depression. Scientists are still uncovering this topic but Stanford Medicine claims that “If someone has a parent or sibling with major depression, that person probably has a 2- or 3-times greater risk of developing depression compared with the average person (or around 20-30% instead of 10%)” (Levinson). Even being around a person with depression for large amounts of your life can make one more susceptible to it. Mental Illnesses can never be fully prevented but there are multiple ways to help reduce the risk of a mental illness, including depression (Clevland Clinic Medical Professionals). Depression can stem from stressful situations, so finding healthy coping mechanisms to process those situations will reduce the risk. Maintaining a healthy sleep routine will also help. Alcohol is a depressant (Watson), so keeping clear of addiction is a good way to keep clear of depression. Another way to prevent depression is self-care. This could mean meditating, doing yoga, or taking time to yourself. Those are all ways of great self-care, but even simple actions matter. That includes things like brushing your teeth, keeping a clean-living environment, fixing your hair, and doing skincare. When people become depressed, they tend to not have the energy to do simple things. Making sure to do those small acts can play a big part in the prevention of depression.
The remedy to depression most people think of is medication. This is called antidepressants. There are many types of antidepressants, and they all do similar but different things. This medication has to be prescribed to you through a doctor and they do have side effects. The effects should lighten over time but if they do not, seek a doctor (Clevland Clinic Medical Professionals). Common side effects include weight gain, headaches, blurred vision, confusion, and sweating (Pope). Antidepressants are safe to use and can be an immense help to mental illness, just be sure to be aware of the side effects.
Depression can return after treatment so therefore it is important to maintain and healthy lifestyle. If it does return it is extremely important to seek help and treatment as soon as possible. (Clevland Clinic Medical Professionals). Without treatment, depression will just become worse. It can lead to intensifying existing health conditions, increasing the chance of dementia, and even self-harm or death.
Mental illness is a serious and heavy topic, and many people suffer from some type of mental illness. Getting help quickly can help people live long and fulfilling lives. Depression causes overwhelming feelings of hopelessness and sadness. Although everything feels useless and like there is no cure, there is. Depression is one of the most curable mental health disorders. When people with clinical depression have sought out for help, 80% - 90% have been successfully treated. With enough effort, time, patience, and a strong support group, depression will slowly dissipate around the world.