WORLD Health Organization said that close to 800,000 people die due to suicide every year, which is one person every 40 seconds. And for me this is already alarming.

I have friends who committed suicide and the reason is depression.

Depression according to the American Psychiatric Association is a common and serious illness that negatively affects how you feel, how you act and the way you think. So how can we help silent depression?

Just a disclaimer, I am not a psychologist or psychiatrist but the steps that I will be sharing helped me survive depression last year.

Here we go with my list.

First, you need to recognize your problems, issues, mistakes and everything that is causing your sadness. It will help you understand the difficulties you have. It is important to know what you are going through, much more it is better to understand yourself first.

Second, cry. Crying according to Neuroscientist Dr. William H. Frey II is not only a human response to sorrow and frustration, it’s a healthy one. He added that crying is a natural way of reducing stress. It is better to cry than keeping your emotions. After you cry it will lessen the burden. Trust me on this.

Find anything you have interests with is the third one. If you love to write, grab a pen and paper then write everything you want to say. It will help you slowly remove the stress. If you love painting, you paint. You sing, dance or whatever you like, do it to lessen the stress. There are some also who discovers new interests on this stage. But if you don’t like doing it, find another way to enjoy the 24 hours of your day.

The fifth one is always know your support system. A family member, a very close friend, or maybe a stranger can be a support system. In this moment of your life, you need someone you can talk to and someone who will listen to you. Whether they will give you advices or not, important is, there is someone who listens to you.

Do not isolate yourself but if you think being alone is better for you then watch movies that will give you good vibes. Like comedy films or funny TV shows. But the disadvantage of being alone too is, you might be thinking of terrible things. So, I recommend you to be with someone you trust. Have a companion and you can watch funny shows together. It is important to laugh.

And lastly, see a Therapist. It doesn’t mean someone advices you to see an expert you’re already crazy. Let us remove this stigma and understand that seeking help from a therapist is being brave and wanting to be cured. There is nothing to be ashamed of by seeing a therapist, it is actually healthy.

It is always healthy to listen to our friends. Communication is very important. Together by understanding we can silence depression. (Cristita L. Canoy, MSU-intern)