‘Aranbanko’ crooner, Harysong stunned his fans when left a troubling message on his Instagram page, on Wednesday, September 5th 2018.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BnWlYkjgG5v/?taken-by=iamharrysong
“Dont cry when i die, celebrate, put up a kingmaker concert,empower more youths,..i have Lived..i have Done my bit,carry on in grace… TEKERO❤ I LOVE YOU ALL.”, he wrote.
The statement made many concerned about the state of his mental health.
Depression is real and your favourite stars and celebrities are not exempted. Being famous does not automatically shield you from mental illness.
Depression has no apparent cause, it is a mood disorder characterized by persistently low mood and a feeling of sadness and loss of interest, it is a persistent problem, not a passing one according to Markus MacGill.
“It is a mental health disorder characterized by persistently depressed mood or loss of interest in daily activities causing significant impairment in daily life.”
According to the World Health Organization, depression is the leading cause of disability in the world; the number of people suffering from depression and/or anxiety disorders have increased by almost 50 per cent, from 416 million in 1990 to 615 million in 2013, with chances of an annual increase.
Mental and emotional health are the single biggest predictors of individual happiness. However, 3 in every 10 Nigerians reportedly experience depressive symptoms, according to the National Depression Report.
The report, which is the first nationwide study of happiness and depression, contains results from the nation-wide happiness and depression survey conducted across all the 36 states in Nigeria including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), internal surveys from The Joy Congress, and up-to-date data on the state of the depression crisis in Nigeria.
In the case of Nollywood actress, Halima Abubakar, she revealed that she was depressed for seven months over a failed relationship. According to the sexy actress, after her relationship collapsed, she didn’t handle it well, thereby leading to her having sleepless nights and constant migraine. She also revealed that at some point she couldn’t sleep for about two weeks. The depression got so bad that she had to be hospitalized.
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THE WAY OUT
“I learned that my sadness never destroyed what was great about me. You just have to go back to that greatness, find that one little light that’s left. I’m lucky I found one little glimmer stored away”, Lady Gaga, making reference to how she dealt with depression.
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Break the silence, seek professional help
Just like Harrysong who wasn’t ashamed of his battle with depression, but rather sought professional help, you need to opt for professional help.
According to the Executive Director, Centre for Individual and Child Development (CICD), Chizoba Akunne, no one is immune to depression, so as long as you have a brain, you can succumb to it.
Some people are vulnerable due to their biological condition, or any other facet, which many therapists have to look out for. It can also be a combination of different factors. More importantly, victims of depression need to open up and talk to people – that way, it becomes easy to identify the problem,” she added.
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Seek social support
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Popular singer, Dencia revealed that her depression wasn’t as a result of the news or what people said about her but rather was more of a family issue.
According to her, she fell into depression when it was revealed to her that the woman who she thought was her elder sister was actually her mother. According to her, it was a very hard truth to believe as she thought her grandparents were her parents and her mother, her elder sister.
Anyone in the shoes of Dencia would need social support and affirmation to be able to break the shackles of depression.
Relationships play a big part in helping to cure depression. Many hormones involved in bonding and helping behaviour help reduce the anxiety and stress related to depression. When you are depression, you are likely embrace isolation. Having someone to talk to you about your feelings and having someone to talk to you out of your drowning feelings of depression can be of monumental help in dealing with depression and preventing a re-occurrence.
3 .Change the way you see things.
Author and famed publisher, Betty Irabor in her book’ Dust to Dew’ recounted how she overcame depression.
“Family Support, Will Power! Change of outlook towards everything. I woke up one day and decided to get out of it. I decided to fight and get my life back. I didn’t like where I was and I realised no one could get me out of this dungeon except me.
I didn’t like the effect it had on my family so I began to fight back. I fought against the dominance of overwhelming negative emotions. I began to find reasons to be happy. I lived in the NOW. I looked for joy in everything around me and started to read the bible again.
I travelled. I went to both London and New York fashion week and stayed abroad for a while. I took time off and went to health farm outside London. The minute I stepped into my room I just zoned out. I slept for 4 hours straight, the first time in nearly 18 months. Before then I was sleeping 2 hours a night.
At the farm, I got to read “The Battlefield of the Mind” by Joyce Meyer and I could see that I had been in a battlefield which only a change of mind-set and prayers could”.
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