抑郁症:当今社会的隐痛

Before she tried to kill herself by jumping from her dormitory building a year ago, no one knew Xing Hua (name changed for privacy), a 22-year-old economics postgraduate from Wuhan, was suffering from depression. She narrowly escaped death, but suffered severe internal injuries and multiple broken bones.

一年前，星华（为保护隐私，此处使用化名）试图从宿舍楼一跃而下来结束自己的生命，在那之前并没有人知道这位来自武汉的22岁的经济学研究生一直饱受抑郁症的折磨。虽然她逃过了一劫，但仍遭受严重内伤以及多处骨折。

“I was in great pain,” said Xing. “Only depression victims could understand the despair – a desperation so great that life itself seems not to matter any more.”

“我非常痛苦，”星华说道，“只有抑郁症患者才能理解那份绝望。心如死灰，以致于活着与否无所谓。”

This year, the World Mental Health Day on Oct 10 was marked by the theme: “Depression: A Global Crisis”. According to the World Federation for Mental Health and the WHO, depression has moved beyond the medical domain to become a social problem.

今年10月10日的心理卫生日主题为：“抑郁症：一个全球性危机”。世界精神卫生联盟以及世界卫生组织表示，抑郁症已经超越医疗领域，成为社会问题。

Statistics from the Beijing Suicide Research and Prevention Center show that of the 287,000 people who commit suicide in China every year, 70 percent are victims of depression.

北京心理危机研究与干预中心提供的相关数据显示，每年中国有28.7万名自杀者，其中70%是抑郁症患者。

“This equates to one depression victim taking their life every three minutes,” cited CCTV recently.

“这相当于每三分钟就有一名抑郁症患者自杀。”中央电视台近日报道称。

According to the Beijing-based Capital Medical University, the number of depression patients has been on the rise in the past years and now accounts for 5 to 10 percent of the population, more than the global average of 5 percent.

北京首都医科大学方面表示，过去的几年中，中国抑郁症患者人数呈逐年增长趋势，现已占到人口总数的5%-10%，这一数字已经超过世界平均值——5%。

Wang Shaoli, vice-president of Beijing Huilongguan Hospital, a medical center specializing in mental health, said that what makes depression so widespread is that everybody can get it.

北京回龙观医院是精神疾病专科医院。该院副院长王绍礼表示，抑郁症之所以传播如此广泛，是因为每个人都可能患病。

“No one is immune to depression,” said Wang. “It has become a social problem because depression kills one’s social capabilities, such as communication, and leads to a negative social mentality.”

“抑郁症对任何人来说都防不胜防，”王绍礼说道，“抑郁症能够扼杀一个人的社交能力，比如沟通交流能力，从而导致消极社会心态的产生，因此抑郁症已经成为一种社会问题。”

According to Wang, depression can be treated with medicine and early psychological consultation. The real problem is the lack of awareness surrounding the issue.

王绍礼表示，抑郁症可以通过药物以及早期心理咨询来进行治疗。真正问题在于，人们缺乏对这一病症的相关意识。

“People with mental health illnesses are discriminated against,” said Wang. “So they are reluctant to go to hospital and often keep the pain to themselves, which only makes matters worse.”

“精神疾病患者往往遭受歧视，”王绍礼说，“所以，他们不愿意去医院就医，往往独自承受痛苦，而这只会令病情加重。”

Only one in 10 depression victims are properly treated in China, according to the Beijing Suicide Research and Prevention Center.

北京心理危机研究与干预中心称，中国仅有十分之一的抑郁症患者在接受有效治疗。

Social cost

社会代价

While depression brings great tragedy to individuals and their families, the social cost are considerable too.

抑郁症在为患者本人及其家庭酿造悲剧的同时，社会代价也非常高。

According to a report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in 2008, depression is one of the most costly mental disorders because of the large number of persons affected and the significant impact it has on the labor force.

经济合作与发展组织在2008年的一份报告指出，抑郁症是代价最高的精神疾病之一，因为患者人数众多，严重影响劳动力。

“The associated cost of depression is more than 118 billion euros (958 billion yuan) in the European Union,” read the report. “Equivalent to 1 percent of regional GDP.”

该报告称：“在欧盟，抑郁症产生的相关费用超过1180亿欧元（合9580亿元人民币）。这相当于整个欧盟地区生产总值的1%。”

Wang Gang, director of the Depression Treatment Center at the Beijing-based Anding Hospital, said that depression is triggered by multiple factors, from genetic heritage to cognitive experience.

北京安定医院抑郁症治疗中心主任王刚表示，抑郁症的诱发原因有很多，比如基因遗传、认知经验等。

“When people get depressed, it becomes part of their thoughts, making them negative, even desperate,” said Wang. “And embedded ideas are difficult to change.”

王刚说：“当人们患上抑郁症时，抑郁情绪会潜入他们的大脑，令他们变得消极，甚至绝望。这种嵌入式思维很难改变。”

That’s why Wang suggests early intervention.

这正是王刚建议对抑郁症采取早期干预的原因。

“Normally it takes about nine months to treat depression,” said Wang. “But in most cases, patients drop treatment half way when they feel some progress.”

王刚说：“一般来说，抑郁症需要九个月的治疗期。但很多时候，病人感到病情有好转，就会半途中止治疗。”

After a year of treatment, Xing is getting better. Although she is sometimes easily distracted from conversation, she is confident.

通过一年的治疗，星华的病情正在好转。虽然谈话中她还是会时不时地无法集中精神，但却十分自信。

“It is a relief that people know I had depression,” said Xing. “The more I talk and interact with people, the less I feel the stress.”

星华说：“人们知道我曾患过抑郁症，这让我释然。我与人们交谈互动得越多，感到的压力也就越少。”