What Is Depression And Why Does It Differ In Women Versus Men?

Persistent sadness and loss of interest in daily activities are what people call depression. Depression is often perceived as a heavy burden, and if you feel the same way, you're not alone! It is one of the most common mental disorders in America, with millions of people also trying to recover the illness.

Being depressed is way too different from being sad or demotivated. Every one of us undergoes low moods and bad days at times, but depression is a state of not being able to come out of that sadness for a long time. It has been extensively reported that women experience significant depression twice as often as men. It's a stumbling block that occurs independently of race and ethnicity.

Women’s and men’s hormones differ in the functioning and hence results in different emotions. The basic necessity to overcome depression is to gain knowledge and awareness regarding the effects of this mental disorder.

The ubiquity of mood disorders in women

Women in the age range of 25 – 45 years may face hormonal risk factors. Hormones such as progesterone and estrogen affect neurotransmitter, cardiac system and neuroendocrine which plays a major role in mood disorders. It is a well-spread certitude that women undergo mood swings during their menstrual cycle which results in irritability, frustration, and restlessness. The fact that women tend to relate everything around them emotionally can cause serious episodes of mood disorders. Especially with negative happenings and their response in general.

Women undergo more emotional and stressful life events and have a great sensitivity towards them as compared to men. It is recorded that adolescent girls report a huge number of negative life events related to relationships, friends, family, and incidents that disturbs them to a higher level like molestation or sexual abuse. 

In response to these negative events, immature girls are more likely to dive in mood disorders prior to severe depression.

The difference in coping styles in men and women

It is widely reported that women cop up with problems and complexities emotionally, mulling about the situations in their head which contribute in long term mood disorders. It has been hypothesized that this manner of coping could lead to severe depression and long-term episodes of mood swings. 

Whereas, men tend to ignore minor issues or distract themselves from troubles. They rather focus on the solution than mulling about a problem in their head. 

Different coping styles also come up with a huge gap in ratios of depression in men and women. We should naturally cure it without going into depression.

How to cure depression through natural ways

Concentration & Meditation

The human body has a remarkable way of making things stable around and inside a person’s body while meditating. The key to stable and balanced emotions is concentration. While concentrating, our unconscious mind becomes active which helps in relaxation.

Hypnotherapy

Hypnotherapy is psychotherapy that activates a person’s subconscious mind as leads to a new attitude, behavior, and response. This therapy aims at making a person focused at a state where everything happening around that person is temporarily blocked out or blurred out. With the help of a trained therapist, a person concentrates and ponders in his own shadow to realize the reality and root values. 

 Health Diet And Workout Routine

Every way to cure depression induces a healthy diet and enough sleep hours. It is a simple and most important daily routine job that everyone must work on to overcome depression. Exercising works wonders in a depressed mind. Endorphin, a chemical released during exercising gives a mental boost to a person enabling better stress handling capacity. Centers for disease control and prevention register that apart from mental health benefits, physical activities and workouts help a person sleep better at night.

Take A Different View

Apart from therapies, there are some things that we need to realize and must work on ourselves. A person who has depression has physiological myopia, a habit of repeatedly saying negative comments to one's own self. The sufferer generally tells himself or herself soul-sucking negative things that demotivate and disinterest him from the daily activities. A person gets so stuck seeing everything in negative ways that he probably misses all the other angles of vision which repels the positive vibes around our body.

A person must always look for different perspectives in a thing and must hold to any vision that seems positive. Good vibes attract people who often find happiness in small things. People must speak to themselves in the mirror to lift up the bars of mood disorder rather than cursing one's own self.

 Revisit A Happy Place To Relive Happy Times

A person who frequently confronts bad experiences naturally abides catatonia. A person who suffers major mood disorders often forgets to visualize good times spent with great people which results in losing touch from friends and family. 

The key to overcoming this habit is to call your loved ones regularly and keep in touch. The moment you feel yourself sliding back to bad visions, take a deep breath and ask your own self to conjure up an activity that you love. Talk to your friends, go to your happy places to enjoy and relive the moments of sheer happiness and satisfaction.

Recovery is not a destination but a journey. While science is still on its a way to find an instant cure for depression, we can help our community to get over it with these simplistic routines and habits. 

Author Bio:

Jennifer Jeane is a proficient writer who firmly believes in the age-old remedies and holistic medicine as a primary cure for several diseases. After graduating she embarked on a journey to find the truth about holistic and natural remedies.

Article Resources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4478054/

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/in-depth/depression/art-20047725

Additional Steps & Resources

If you’re feeling depressed and wondering what you can do about it, there are options. Talk to a friend or family member who might be able to help you recognize the signs and symptoms and proceed with help. Or talk to your doctor, therapist or mental health counselor to see what options might be available for you. In addition, the website and helpline for SAMHSA can be a great resource to find more information and get help at any time. SAMHSA Hotline

If you’re looking for additional options on how to deal with depression on a daily basis, here are a few more ideas. According to This Way Up, these additional behavioral strategies can help.

• Set goals for daily activity. Plan full days of useful activity by making a list of the activities you are going to engage in at different times during the day. Try to stick to this plan as closely as possible.

• What activities do you enjoy? Try to increase the amount of time you spend on these enjoyable activities.

• Avoid comparing the way you are behaving or feeling now while you are depressed with the way you used to behave or feel before becoming depressed.

• Reward yourself for your efforts. Ask others around you to encourage and praise you for each small step you take. Recovering from depression is a bit like learning to walk again after breaking your leg.

• If a task seems too difficult, do not despair. Break the task down into even easier steps and start again more slowly.

Choosing to add fitness, nutrition and healthy lifestyle changes into your mental health plan, we’d love to help. Adopting these changes can make a world of difference for your mental state. We’d love to have you for a fitness retreat to jumpstart your new healthy lifestyle. In addition, if you can’t make it to a retreat, we also offer online personal training and nutrition coaching to help get you started as well. Please make sure to reach out for help if you’re struggling with depression. According to AADA.org, 322 million people worldwide live with depression. It’s common and you aren’t alone. You aren’t alone and with the right support, depression can be managed. Get help so you can ask the right questions, track your progress and review available treatments. - Margot

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