Depression

The recent tragic death of Gary Speed has been a great shock to all.  It seemed to colleagues and friends, as well as fans, that he had everything going for him - a wonderful supportive family, a great career and was generally well-loved and respected - that his apparent suicide is baffling and inexplicable.

We cannot know what was going through Gary Speed's mind at the time - sometimes people suffering from depression are so ashamed of their feelings that they become adept at hiding them, and to all intents and purposes 'appear' to the outside world as if everything is fine.  We can only guess that Gary's state of mind was clearly very disturbed at the time of his death and we have no way of knowing the reasons behind this, however it does seem to be that the stigma of clinical depression is still very much in existence, as many people feel ashamed and embarrassed to admit to being depressed.

It is vitally important that a strong message is conveyed to people that clinical depression is an illness (just like arthritis or diabetes) and people suffering from this CAN be treated, and ultimately achieve mental wellbeing. The wonderful Stephen Fry has done much to help in this area, having been very open and honest about his own bipolar disorder, but it still seems that the general consensus is that depression as an illness is poorly understood and even in some cases seen as a weakness in character.

I always urge people who come to me with symptoms of depression to go to their GP in the first instance.  It may be that there is a physical reason for their low mood, and this needs to be explored.  Whilst many people are reluctant to take medication, this can sometimes (along with counselling, cognitive behavioural therapy or hypnotherapy) be extremely useful.  

This is often quite a difficult time of year - some people may be thinking of lost loved ones, many are finding it hard to think of how they are going to finance Christmas, some people feel the sting of loneliness even more than usual.   If you are suffering, I do urge you to seek help, whether this is speaking to a friend or family member, contacting the samaritans or speaking to a medical professional.

My thoughts and prayers go to Gary Speed and his family.

Best wishes,
Wendy