Mitigate stress to avoid mental health problems

 

Mitigate stress to avoid mental health problems

By Jackson Nyakoe  

 

There is an alarming rate of reported and unreported cases of suicide as an outturn of stress and depression. It is expeditiously escalating into a pandemic, and urgent action should be implemented to curb the menace.

People are struggling and aching in silence. They don't want to speak up, and some can't afford the therapy. People are acting normal and okay but are dying on the inside.

We are living in a society full of people with selfish mindsets. People do not want to check up on their neighbours and friends.

On the other side, the victims don’t want to share what they are going through, even with the family members or buddies who accommodate their inner circle. The holes keep enlarging until they are powerless to get out of it.

Shockingly, both the employed and unemployed are victims of this. The unemployed people’s expectations are always high once they land a job. Fewer salaries, pressure from bosses, overworking, and stagnation in junior positions for a long time are the primary triggers of depression and mental illness.

The crisis of depression is more threatening than an economic crisis. People can’t report to work on time, or they don’t know entirely because of mental disorders. This disease highly flies youths aged between 20 to 35 years.

Unemployment, tough life brought up by economic factors, and family matters, especially when a man stalls to care for his family because of financial constraints and toxic relationships, are the significant drivers of depression.

This peril is now like a phase, but most people fail to fight it. After trying more than two solutions, and they don’t help, many give up. Others start drinking alcohol and even forget to eat healthier without considering that their immunity is weakening. In the long run, these issues develop into suicidal thoughts.

The Ministry of Health should implement the Kenya mental health action as fast as possible to rescue the future of this nation. We open up to our close friends as a mechanism for finding a solution, but that's how they get topics to discuss with their allies.

The intensity of depression for someone who has a career or is employed is a bit elevated compared to unemployed fellas. The higher your career is, the few real friends you have. Your trust levels are low, and you are overconfident in almost everything. Now with all this in play, one major setback in life will get you back to default quickly.

Fortunately, there is still hope. You can tickle depression by hitting the gym and trying weightlifting once you feel down. You can make yourself busy. Loneliness should not be encouraged at all at this time. Having friends to talk to will play a salient role in battling the disease.

With no robust support system from relevant departments, depression is kicking in and draining our future generation.

People don’t fake being depressed; they fake being okay. Visiting a therapist for counselling should be one of the immediate and best remedies. Most people can’t afford that therapy because it’s expensive.

This should not worry you. You could go online and read articles about depression, different states of depression, causes, s treatments and herbal remedies.

Do you have hobbies? If not, find something that interests you and keep at it. Watch different films, play video games, or you can also ride a bicycle, and these exercises can offer you relief from depression. Let us be our brother’s keeper by regularly checking our friends’ whereabouts.

Mental illness is scary, but it’s treatable.

By Jackson Nyakoe (journalism and communication student Moi university) Twitter  @Jacksonnyakoe