Japanese actor Haruma Miura committed suicide at home. Here are the truths you don't know about depression

On July 18, actor Haruma Miura was absent from work for no reason. Later, staff confirmed that he had hanged himself at home. He was only 30 years old.

His friends revealed that Haruma Miura started drinking heavily two years ago and was living in a state of self-destruction. Some netizens dug up his tweets complaining about the unspoken rules of the entertainment industry and believed that he was suffering from depression. The police also found a diary in his house with the words "I want to die" written on it.

The death of a person is heartbreaking, but it should also draw our attention to mental illness. What are the symptoms of depression? How to treat it? How to prevent it? Experts will explain it to you online.

Du ZhigangChief Physician

Department of Neurology, Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University

Symptoms of depression

Exhaustion: Patients often feel tired and weak, procrastinate, and unable to handle daily work. They even feel weak and don’t want to move after getting up every morning. These are precursors to depression.

Unexplained pain and discomfort: Depression may affect the human body, and patients may experience various discomforts, such as headaches, stomachaches, chest pains, shoulder and back pains, and even nausea and loss of appetite. This pain is not paroxysmal and may last 24 hours. However, after a detailed examination by the doctor, no problems were found, and the possibility of depression should be considered.

Eating disorders: Some patients with depression show symptoms of low mood, loss of appetite, and loss of taste for food; while some patients with depression often feel hungry and must satisfy themselves with food, overeating, and thus becoming obese.

Sleep disorders: Patients with depression often have symptoms of sleep disorders. Some suffer from excessive sleep, sleeping more than 10 hours a day, while others suffer from insomnia, restlessness, etc., which are all precursors to depression.

Often getting angry over trivial matters: Patients will get angry and have a bad temper over very small things. This is not necessarily due to their personality, but may be a manifestation of depression.

Cai YiChief Physician

Department of Geriatrics and Physical Diseases Psychiatry, Hunan Second People's Hospital

The main symptoms of depression

Feeling depressed, unhappy, and not interested in anything;

Loss of will, no motivation, no desire to move;

Very tired and lack of energy;

Difficulty falling asleep, very shallow sleep, nightmares, and even worse, early awakening, waking up at 3-4 o'clock and unable to fall asleep again;

I have a low self-esteem, feel inferior to others, and feel my brain has become dull;

Feeling pessimistic and having thoughts of death.

Lu Heli Attending Physician

Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University

How to Treat Depression

Treatment of depression follows a full course of treatment strategy, including 8-12 weeks of acute treatment, 4-9 months of consolidation treatment, and 2-3 years of maintenance treatment.

For patients with multiple relapses or residual symptoms, long-term medication is recommended. The most commonly used drugs in clinical practice are sertraline, fluoxetine, paroxetine, fluvoxamine, citalopram, escitalopram, venlafaxine, duloxetine, vortioxetine, etc. These drugs generally take 1-2 weeks to begin to take effect.

In the early stage of medication, there will be side effects, such as nausea, poor appetite, constipation, diarrhea, etc., and the patient will adapt in about 10 days. Therefore, there is no need to worry too much if you feel uncomfortable in the early stage of medication. If the discomfort is more obvious, you can go back to the hospital for a follow-up visit.

In addition to drug therapy, psychotherapy also plays a vital role, so in clinical practice, drug therapy can be selected in combination with psychotherapy to achieve the best therapeutic effect.

Shen ZhaohuiDeputy Chief Physician

Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Yinchuan First People's Hospital

How to prevent depression?

To establish good social relationships, everyone has three major emotional needs, which is professionally called a psychological support system. This support system can help better cope with emotional difficulties and problems.

You can read some relevant popular science books to learn about health knowledge. If you do have any discomfort, you should seek medical attention and receive regular treatment in a timely manner.

Try to get more sun and exercise. Studies have shown that exercise can produce happy and calming molecules in the brain, which helps improve people's mood and prevent depression.

Expand your horizons and cultivate a wider range of interests and hobbies, such as reading or going out more often, enrich your experience and spiritual life, and try not to let negative emotions and pessimistic thoughts occupy your consciousness;

Eat a healthy diet. Maintain good eating habits, ensure comprehensive nutrition, strengthen your physical fitness, and improve your mental state.