• Question: how does someone get depression and what is the cure? And can it be avoided?

    Asked by 977bm1926 to Peter, Jonathan, Grace, Doris, David, Ann on 30 May 2019.
    • Photo: Grace Kago

      Grace Kago answered on 30 May 2019: last edited 30 May 2019 3:30 pm


      Someone can get depression due to many reasons: For some it might be hereditary, others yet might have imbalances in the neurotransmitters that are necessary for mood regulation, poor nutrition, physical health struggles, drug consumption, sudden life events and stress.

      There isn’t a cure as such.. I think the key lies in learning how to manage one’s depression so that it doesn’t take over one’s life. There are a series of treatments that one can do to try and equip the patient to manage their depression. These treatments depend on what type of depression one is struggling with. Treatments can range from cognitive behavioural therapy, which tries to change how our past traumas/experiences can distort our thinking/perception of life events to medications that try and regulate those neurotransmitters, and also medical procedures like electroconvulsive therapy which is where they electrically stimulate ones brain.

      I’m not sure that it can be avoided, because it is a really complex disease! However, it can certainly be managed!

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