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Watching someone you care about suffer from depression can be incredibly difficult. You might wonder what you can do to help, but remember that you alone cannot lift him out of his low feelings. According to the Royal College of Psychiatrists, men suffer from depression just as much as women but are less likely to talk about it or ask for help. Although you should encourage a depressed man to seek professional help, you can also encourage him to communicate his feelings to others.
Depression often carries with it the stigma that it is a woman's condition, but in truth, it is nearly as common among men. And even though men tend to experience less conspicuous physical and psychological symptoms than women and are less likely to seek professional help because they don't recognize the symptoms as they relate to the condition, depression is a serious medical reality that affects millions of men under the age of 40.
All human beings experience being down from time to time. A person who is depressed, though, experiences this sadness for an extended period, and may even begin to believe that he will feel this way forever. According the The Royal College of Psychiatrists, gay teenagers and young adults are more likely to experience depression due, in part, to the stress of "coming out."
The triangle of depression is a term coined by Peter Tang and Craig Anthony as a tongue-in-cheek theory of depression. Depression is a mental illness usually signified by melancholia, poor self-esteem and lack of pleasure in day-to-day life. There are many forms of psychological depression such as bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder and dysthymia. The theory of the triangle of depression is centered around relationships.
According to the University of Maryland's Health Center, while biology and genetics may influence how men and women handle stress, it is truly their coping mechanisms and lifestyle choices that affect their overall health.
Many people are familiar with the idea of postpartum depression in women. However, according to psychologist James F. Paulson, assistant professor of pediatrics at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Virginia, 10 percent of new fathers suffer postpartum depression. There are ways for men to successfully deal with depression before it causes irreparable damage to themselves, their partners or their babies.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, more than 6 million men suffer from depression in the United States every year, but they manifest it in different ways than women. Thinking of depression as a problem for women is dangerous and incorrect. If you're a man who uses illegal substances, puts yourself in dangerous situations or gets angry on a regular basis, you might be suffering from depression.
Depression is a mental disorder that causes feelings of sadness, worthlessness, or even suicidal thoughts in those that suffer from it. For years, depression has been perceived and portrayed as a "woman's disease," partially because men are more likely to minimize the symptoms they are experiencing. Although men generally experience fewer symptoms of depression simultaneously than women do, depression does affect a large number of men.
It can be somewhat difficult to recognize signs of depression in men. Men are usually perceived to be less verbal with feelings and less willing to discuss emotions with others. Men also may be less aware of subjective feelings of depression. There are ways to recognize when men are depressed that differ a little from how depression is expressed on average.
Depression can occur in both women and men. Although many of the factors which lead to the condition are the same, for example, a hereditary risk, some causes of depression in men are very specific to the male psyche and what men see as society's expectations.
