Male
Depression Symptoms May Be Ignored By Most Men
Whether you are
male or female, depression is a serious disease. In males, depression
brings on different symptoms than in females. While female depression
may make a woman feel sad and emotional, male depression can bring
on symptoms of anger, aggression, hostility, and irritability. Society
often pressures men to ignore the symptoms of male depression. However,
any time that a man suffers from depression, it is definitely not
wise to “tough it out.”
In addition to
becoming miserable, isolated, and withdrawn, male depression can
lead to serious consequences such as alcohol abuse, drug abuse,
risky activities, and suicide. Other common coping strategies of
male depression include compulsive overwork, reckless driving, risky
sexual behavior, criminal behavior, and shutting oneself off from
the outside world.
Unfortunately,
there is no coping strategy that will cure male depression. Since
many men believe that sadness, hopelessness, and mental illness
are signs of weakness, males will deny or hide their depression
until a tragic event forces them to get help. Instead of waiting
for a disaster, men and their loved ones can watch for the warning
signs of male depression and seek treatment immediately:
- Feeling down, sad, worthless,
and guilty
- Sleeping poorly and fatigue
- Anger and violent behavior
- Frustration
- Loss of interest in hobbies,
career, sex, and other pleasurable activities
- Alcohol and drug abuse
- Headaches, digestive disorders,
and other chronic pain
- Suicidal thoughts
If not treated
promptly, male depression can also lead to significant health problems.
The chronic stress of male depression is believed to cause heart
disease in some men. Studies have shown that men who suffer with
male depression have double the risk of dying from any cause, compared
to men without depression. For reasons that are not yet understood,
the risk of death in male depression is greater than the risk of
death in female depression patients.
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