From the fourth Thursday of November through Jan. 1, the 8.3 percent of Americans who deal with major depression must add to their daily challenges a new demand: to show some holiday cheer.
Mental health professionals say that celebrations, birthdays, anniversaries, or similar life events can be difficult for those struggling with depression. To be inundated by calls for constant joy can plunge them even deeper into despair.
“If you’re already having a hard time, it’s going to feel even more pronounced,” Ciara Bogdanovic, a licensed marriage and family therapist in Los Angeles, told The Epoch Times.
Clinical depression is more than sadness, the experts say. Symptoms include isolating oneself, loss of interest in work, hobbies, recreational activities or relationships, loss of appetite, lethargy, insomnia or excessive sleeping, and persistent sadness….