Have We Normalized Anxiety and Depression? A reflection on self-care and psychological support

In the last decade, talking about mental health has ceased to be taboo in many spaces, which is a great advance. However, with this openness has also come a worrying trend: the normalization of conditions such as anxiety and depression. Expressions such as “we are all anxious” or “depression is part of modern life” have become commonplace, often trivializing the suffering of those who actually face these pathologies in a clinical and profound way.

By Alexandra Zareth

Anxiety and Depression: Not Just “Bad Days”.

How we have normalized anxiety and depression.

Yes, everyone's stress has increased a lot (literally) and all psychiatric disorders have increased, that is true, and unfortunately the number of diagnoses is increasing, although we hear a lot the phrase: “gave depression to (x) person", as if it is something common, in reality it should not be like that. So we want to clarify things and answer questions…

It is important to start from clinical definitions. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines depression as “a common mental disorder characterized by the presence of sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or lack of self-esteem, sleep or appetite disturbances, feelings of tiredness and lack of concentration.”

On the other hand, anxiety is defined by psychologist David H. Barlow, an expert in emotional disorders, as “an anticipation of a future threat accompanied by muscular tension, avoidance behavior and constant vigilance.” At clinical levels, it can become disabling and is associated with disorders such as generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), panic disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), among others.

Why Have We Normalized These Disorders?

Part of the problem lies in the culture of performance and immediacy. We live in a society that celebrates hyperproductivity, often at the expense of mental health. Chronic stress has become a constant, and symptoms of anxiety or depression are so prevalent that they are no longer recognized as warning signs, but as part of the “price of success” or the “day to day”.

Likewise, clinical language has been trivialized in social networks. The word “anxious” is used to describe impatience, or “depressive” for a passing sadness. This trivialization prevents distinguishing between a transitory emotion and a real mental disorder that requires professional intervention.

Self-Care Tips and Psychological Support

Fortunately, there are effective ways to manage these disorders and to accompany those who suffer from them. Here are some tips backed by mental health experts:

1. Seek Professional Help

Cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy (CBT), recommended by the American Psychological Association (APA), is one of the most effective therapies for treating both anxiety and depression. Pharmacological treatments are also available, but must be prescribed by a psychiatrist.

2. Establish Healthy Routines

Sleeping well, eating a balanced diet, reducing the consumption of stimulants (such as caffeine) and practicing moderate exercise are fundamental pillars. Spanish psychiatrist Enrique Rojas states that “external order generates internal order”, highlighting the importance of habits for emotional stability.

3. Practice Self-Compassion

Kristin Neff, a pioneering researcher on the subject, states that self-compassion is key to emotional well-being. Treating oneself with kindness during difficult times can significantly reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression.

4. Emotional Regulation Techniques

Mindfulness, deep breathing, guided meditation and therapeutic writing help to connect with the present and reduce the intensity of negative thoughts. These practices have shown empirical evidence of effectiveness according to studies published in the Journal of Anxiety Disorders.

5. Don't Minimize Others' Pain

Listening without judgment, avoiding phrases like “cheer up” or “it's all in your head,” and offering companionship or professional guidance is more helpful than any empty advice. Sincere emotional support is a powerful tool for recovery.

Anxiety:

Anxiety is normal. We all get it at some point. It is usually related to some situation (public speaking is perhaps the best known) and I think some people now after so much confinement and social distancing, some of us have some social anxiety. If you've ever been bitten by a dog well... you can feel the anxiety when you hear one barking around, which is to be expected. The thing is to ask yourself some questions and examine yourself, give yourself time, think about WHAT IS HAPPENING TO ME ...which many of us don't do and that's why we can't even answer how we are with the one we started with.

Anxiety helps us to cope with certain situations, when crossing a busy street, we will be careful, right? In an emergency, anxiety will help us to direct our natural efforts to focus and help us to solve and adapt to any need. When we have a stronger heart later and so we can run away from danger, etc. So it's not bad in itself.

But - of course - it can become a problem.

If it stays in a way that seems permanent and starts to disrupt your routines - school, work, daily activities, etc. - it can become a problem.

We can think of anxiety as fog - it can happen, but it can still make it impossible to see what's around us and paralyze us.

For an official diagnosis, you have symptoms present for 6 months.

Anxiety can be navigated in several ways.

• Medications in the hospital can be almost immediate

• Oral medication given to you by a doctor a week many people feel the difference continues.

• There are several therapeutic interventions that psychologists can try.

DEPRESSION 

1. Symptoms for an “episode”

2. Depressed mood - low interest or pleasure.

3. 5 or more for two weeks

4. Most of the day feeling sad, empty, hopeless, tearful, tearful

5. Most of the day decreased interest, no pleasure in most everyday things

6. Weight change (+5%) in one month, change in appetite

7. Insomnia or hypersomnia

8. Psycho-muscular retardation or agitation (moving slow/too fast)

9. Fatigue

10. Feelings of worthlessness, remorse, guilt most of the day

11. Decreased ability to concentrate, indecisiveness would almost give out

12. Recurrent thoughts of death, suicidal ideation without a plan, suicide plan initiated

13. Social, occupational impairment as a result of anxiety/preoccupation

14. Disturbance cannot be attributed to use of alcohol, drugs, medications, or medical condition (thyroid, blood pressure, etc.)

15. The discomfort, disturbance is not explained by another disorder.

    
    

TREATMENTS

• Antidepressant medication because the brain is either over-producing or over-producing

• More or less 2 weeks people feel results

• If by 4 weeks there is no change then the dosage is re-evaluated.

• It is good to walk the medications with oral therapies where interventions are used such as learning skills like meditation, gratitude, holistic planning, questioning and redirection of thoughts, etc.

In other words, solutions are created, evaluated, modified, and you continue to live....

We feel that there's a lot of talk about both - anxiety and depression.

Statistics indicate that young people and children are suffering from this at SUCH extreme levels that, all over the world, doctors are saying that we should call this an epidemic in minors.

We don't think this is because minors have it too much, but rather that minors are MORE likely to see it and have someone report it.

But okay, then, let's see that these two conditions are very different on paper although some things are similar.

Tool for every day

Emotional wheel

Take a deep breath and observe the wheel.

I invite you to keep breathing... that wheel is full of emotions.

All those emotions are yours. They tell you something. They show you something.

They accompany you.

But there are some that settle in our hearts, our minds, our spirits, and our bodies because they are related to NOT-GOOD realities.

Keep breathing.

We invite you to write down that feeling, or some words that represent that situation that brings you back or keeps bothering you - there is power in this letting go exercise.

 There is power in this exercise of LETTING GO.

That thing that made you uncomfortable, that thing that happened to you, that thing that is bothering you... that memory, that story - it is not good for you.

That memory, that story - is not good for you. 

LET GO because what is next in your future is good and to make room for the good that is coming, you have to clear, remove, make space, prepare that ground - mentally, emotionally, spiritually and physically.

Our emotional, mental, spiritual state affects our physical...

Many people with certain traumas suffer from the same discomforts e.g. gastrointestinal or migraines... because there is a connection....

Release

Keep breathing

Release

Emotion wheel

Commitment

Here we empower you. What does it mean, that we believe in you and we know that you have super mega potential and that this is not going to stay in the plastic here we want to know, what are you going to do with this information?

What are you going to examine or share or read or read or think or correct me...? What's next?

That's your commitment and we want you before you leave to tell us what it is.

www.alexandrazareth.com