The Causes of Depression Essay Sample

"Depression is living in a body that fights to survive, with a mind that tries to die". By definition, depression is a psychological condition characterized by constant feelings of sorrow, grief, anger, and hopelessness which commonly arise from past traumatic experiences, stress, death of a loved one, family problems, and even certain events such as unemployment. It has been proven as a leading cause of various disabilities, diseases and also contributes to a large percentage of suicide globally. Today, depression remains prevalent in our society and currently affects millions of lives worldwide, making it as one of the most notable and significant global issues at present.

There are various reasons why depression is so widespread in today's society. Social media and bad lifestyle behaviors are two main factors contributing to the growth in depression rates in today’s culture….

The first factor to evaluate is people's social media usage. According to current statistics, 59.5% (4.32 billion) of the world's population are active internet users. Although it has been demonstrated to be a valuable tool for practically all of us, it also has a bigger potential of destroying our lives. Multiple studies found a strong link between depression and social media, as it increases feelings of isolation, loss of self-esteem, increased pressure, and even suicidal thoughts. Another study conducted by the Child Mind Institute found that teens and young adults (ages 15-32) who spent hours online had a 14-66% increased likelihood of getting depression than those who spent lesser times.

In addition to social media, an unhealthy lifestyle also contributes to our society's greater prevalence of depression. During the year 2019, an annual world survey presented by WIN International stated that over a quarter of our world's overall population has been considered to be living with improper lifestyle behaviors. Consequently, individuals who make poor health choices are more prone to suffer from depressive episodes and find it more grueling to overcome them, as dictated in an article published by the American Addiction Centers. Moreover, a recent meta-analysis that included research from 21 countries specified that dietary patterns associated with high consumption of sugar, refined grains, fat as well as low levels of physical activity, heightened the risk of developing emotional disorders. This is due to the fact that poor lifestyle practices induce brain deterioration, impaired brain function, and decreased levels of thinking, usually resulting in the inability to cope with stressful situations leading to various mental illnesses, especially depression.

As previously mentioned, depression has a massive effect on the lives of millions. The World Health Organization even led and released a study in 2007 that identified depression as the world’s second leading cause of disability and grants the biggest potential on worsening health; primarily leading to chronic diseases like arthritis, asthma, and diabetes to name a few. Additionally, numerous reports show that it also diminishes sleep quality, performance in daily activities, and daily productivity, with 56.9% of people suffering from sleep insomnia, 63.9-72.2% experiencing poor concentration, low levels of energy, and heightened anxiety, with productivity dropping to an upsetting 33.4%, resulting in unemployment and lower pay for some workers. In summary, the implications of this mental condition bring nothing but a lower quality of life; social and health problems; a crucial drop in the person’s ability to perform efficiently whether at work, home, or school.

Even though depression is proved to be a leading cause for decreased productivity as stated in the previous paragraph, some people still regard it as an excuse to be lazy. This however is not true, because depression affects certain individuals in such a way that they feel too much exhaustion to the extent that they resort to just giving up or even discontinuing certain plans in life due to tremendous amounts of pressure. Various symptoms which include the lack of motivation can often be confused with laziness. But in fact, they are not the same and making these assumptions will not help. Telling someone who has depression that they are lazy will only worsen their mental and emotional state, and even in some cases increase the likelihood of their withdrawal from society. 

With all the pieces of evidence mentioned previously, it is suitable to say that depression, whatever its cause may be, continues to be a critical obstacle to every single one of us. It grows more powerful and indestructible, especially when we are at our weakest. Nevertheless, even being surrounded by its endless cycles of pain, one must remember that every conflict in life has a solution. The knowledge must always be embedded in our minds that change starts within us. Therefore, if we truly want to weaken the unseen forces brought by this mental illness, then there is a need for us to improve how we live our lives. Stop looking at your phones and start reaching out and make meaningful connections towards others, ditch all those junk that you are eating and start a  healthier approach to your lifestyle, and finally….. don’t lose hope, as in all of the problems circulating our world, we are not alone, we have each other.