Mental health: Don't wait for the problem to go away on its own because it won't

Why is it so difficult to admit to yourself and others that you are actually anxious and/or depressed? Here are 11 symptoms of high-functioning depression

Maybe you are one of those who internally struggles with anxiety and depression, and externally presents himself to the world as a happy person? Is it because you fear that your confession will jeopardize your career, social status, relationship? Or are you trying to diminish your value and embarrass yourself in front of others? Or something else, and only you know that.

"If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you are not well, no matter how hard you try to hide it. Besides, I think that deep down you are aware of your condition. All in all, practice shows that it is not at all unusual for people with anxiety disorders and clinical depression know how to hide their condition from others for a very long time," he writes Mirella Rasic Paolini, specialist in holistic mental and spiritual health for Jutarnji list. Below we present the rest of her text.

"I have met a lot of people who internally struggle with symptoms of depression, while on the outside they seem happy, smiling, and ok. It is a form of functional depression that over time and if untreated, can only worsen the course of the disease, and in some Unfortunately, it also leads to the worst. Yes, anxiety disorder and depression are like any other illness that requires sick leave.

Therefore, understand that the cost of hiding anxiety and/or depression, or both, can be very high.

From my practice, these would be some of the most common reasons why people do this.

Not everyone who is sad is necessarily depressed

It is important that you understand that not everyone who has depression fits the stereotype of being sad, withdrawn, withdrawn or withdrawn from others, or unable to get out of bed. No, because many studies based on examining the brains of depressed people using a technology called computed tomography have found that there are several types of depression.

This is a "high-functioning" type of depression - sufferers laugh, are cheerful in front of others, and look perfectly fine on the outside, while struggling with themselves and slowly falling apart on the inside.

They may experience some of the basic symptoms of depression, such as:

• Bad mood
• Fatigue and lack of energy
• Changes in diet and weight
• Problems with digestion
• Pain (head, muscles, bones)
• Skin problems (atopic dermatitis)
• Loss of interest in enjoyable activities
• Slowed cognitive abilities
• Feelings of worthlessness or guilt
• Indecision
• Suicidal thoughts/plans

Despite all these internal symptoms, they try to act calm, and thus spend a lot of energy to mask their true inner state.

Also, what accompanies depression and anxiety, and what a person skillfully hides, are some of the less visible symptoms of anxiety, such as:

• Tension/nervousness
• Feeling tired or weak
• Sleep problems
• Uncontrollable worry about anything and everything
• Feeling of impending doom/panic
• Difficulty concentrating
• Increased heart rate
• Digestive problems
• Avoid

  What are the most common reasons people hide that they are not well?

For the sufferer, there are a number of understandable reasons why they hide their true condition. Here are some:

A feeling of shame

The stigma of mental illness can lead some individuals to think that depression and anxiety are signs of weakness or feelings of worthlessness, which is quite common for people who grew up in families where there were members who were not mentally well, and this was not discussed.

That's why a person may feel enormous shame for not being able to deal with their anxiety or depression on their own. Therefore, they reach for a bad solution - they pretend that they are fine and that everything is fine in life. I emphasize that all the so-called perfectionists who are often driven by shame and who can find any mental health disorder intolerable and unacceptable, so they invest great effort, effort and energy to look ok and "normal" skillfully hiding behind a mask. This group also includes members of the LGBT community.

stigma

Although today much more is said and done to develop awareness when it comes to mental health, it is still not enough because stigma still exists, especially among children and young people. It happens that those stigmatized with mental health problems think of themselves as deficient, worthless, etc. Unfortunately, our culture still does not fully understand that depression and anxiety are neurobiological diseases caused by a number of factors, including brain function as well as genetics. predisposition.

Fear of discrimination

Sufferers try very hard to hide their symptoms, especially at school or at work, for fear of not getting a promotion, or worse, being fired. Such intrusive thoughts cause enormous stress in an anxious or depressed person for several reasons:

• because she struggles to stay focused on work
• for everything to be done perfectly and on time, while at the same time fighting internally and with themselves and the aforementioned symptoms such as: low energy level, constant fatigue, problems with concentration, brain fog, bad mood, worries, etc.

On the other hand, their fears are not completely unfounded, because all kinds of things happen. That's why all people who suffer from mental disorders should be protected by law, which unfortunately is often not the case, especially in the private sector, because discrimination still exists. Honor the exceptions who show understanding and support an employee struggling with depression and/or anxiety disorder.

Fear of burdening others

Behind depression, there is always a feeling of shame, but also guilt, which creates a feeling of burden for those who internally struggle with depressive or anxiety symptoms. If a person is caring and devoted as a parent and as a child, then asking for help is a "waste of time" for them, since they have harnessed all their resources on their loved ones (spouse, children, parents), and they simply do not want to burden them.

Denial

Many sometimes defend themselves with a psychological defense mechanism called denial. It is like a kind of our tool that protects us from the inside when things go wrong in our life or we suffer some losses.

The benefit of denial lies in the fact that it allows a person to adapt to a difficult or disturbing change in reality (loss, breakup, move, illness). On the other hand, and what is bad, this denial keeps a person away from the reality of the mental state and actually prevents them from admitting that a health problem exists and that it is necessary to seek professional help instead of denying that everything is fine. I noticed that this defense mechanism is most often used by individuals who have already made this model in their primary family. On the other hand, denial can also stem from fear of side effects of drugs, mistrust of doctors and psychologists due to past experiences...

They don't realize they are anxious/depressed

Yes, you won't believe it, there are also those who don't realize at all that they are not well, that is, that they are depressed. They usually have less recognizable symptoms of depression or anxiety, and in some cases, their symptoms can slowly increase over time, making them harder to notice, such as brain fog, irritability, crying, body aches (headaches, stomach aches, digestive problems , etc.), sleep problems, dental problems, weak libido, brittle nails, frequent inflammations and a more pronounced reaction to stress.

Don't wait for it to go away on its own, because it won't

Pretending that everything is OK, and nothing is OK at all, can ultimately be very risky for the patient's health. Why? Because untreated depression and anxiety increase the chances of developing other mental disorders and health problems (autoimmune diseases), substance abuse, eating disorders, panic attacks, relationship problems, work problems, suicide, etc.

The good thing is that today both anxiety and depression are very successfully treated with psychotherapy and medication (when necessary). I always emphasize that in addition to this work on yourself, a complete change of way of life is required.

If you recognize yourself somewhere or suspect that one of your loved ones may be skillfully hiding their problems, be sure to seek professional help in time," says Mirella Rasic Paolini for Jutarnji list.