Depression – Can You Overcome it?


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Depression, how do you see it?

What is the first that comes to mind when you hear the word depression? Can you overcome depression? Many people think it can only happen to the weak. Others say people are using it as an excuse for attention. I also heard people say, depression is not an illness, and that someone can snap out of it.

Nothing could be further from the truth…

Depression affects people from all walks of life, from young people to Doctors, Teachers, and Pastors. It can cause tremendous pain, not only for the person suffering from it, but also for people close to that person.

What is the root cause for depression?

Dr. MK Strydom, in her DVD – Healing begins with the sanctification of the Heart, and her book -The Bible from a Medical Perspective, Medicine from a Biblical Perspective, explains it in much more detail. You can find the DVD and Book on her website –

According to Dr. Strydom, the root cause of depression comes from low self-esteem, self-hatred, self-rejection, self-condemnation, and/or guilt in a person’s thought life. It can also be inherited. She goes into more detail in her book.

To understand depression

If we want to help someone close to us with depression, or if we want to help ourselves, we need to know how the nerves in your brain work and why people are depressed.

Dr. Strydom explains:

Your brain consists of 3 trillion nerves. They are all joined or linked to each other. Information travels along the nerves in the form of an electrical current. At the joining between two nerves, there is a gap which is called the nerve synapse. The nerve synapse joins two nerves. When the electrical current reaches the end of a nerve, it stimulates the production of chemicals, called neurotransmitters that travel across the nerve synapse to the next nerve. Reaching the next nerve, they attach to the special receptors. This then generates an electrical current in that nerve. This is how an electrical current is passed on from one nerve to the next.

There are different types of neurotransmitters in your brain. The most important for you to remember is, Serotonin, Norepinephrine, and Dopamine

Hypothalamus – The Hypothalamus is the mind-body connection. It releases chemicals in response to our thoughts that travel throughout our whole body, affecting the way in which we function. It responds to those thoughts of low self-esteem, self-hatred, self-rejection, etc, of the neurotransmitters in your brain. Serotonin is lowered the most. Norepinephrine and to a lesser extent Dopamine is also lowered. When these Neurotransmitters levels are lowered, it causes the whole central portion of your brain, called the deep limbic system to inflame.

Serotonin is the chemical that was designed to make you feel good about yourself. So, when the serotonin levels are too low, you feel bad about yourself. Low serotonin can also cause migraines, binge eating, and weight problems. The second nerve tries to compensate for this deficiency of serotonin by increasing the number of receptors. These excess receptors on the nerves cause the symptoms of depression.

Can you snap out of depression?

No, you can’t! Many years ago I was prescribed anti-depressants, but it was more stress-related. In my case, I had to use the medication only for a short period of time. But in people with serious depression, you can not snap out of it, or decide to quit your medication at any time, unless you are doing it with medical help.

I never realized how serious depression could be, until I experienced it with people close to me. But when you are closely involved with people suffering from depression, you can deal with a lot of emotions of your own. You can go through stages of helplessness, frustration, anger, guilt, sadness, and many more. You have to learn, that while taking care and trying to help a person with depression, you also need to look after yourself. It is all good to try and help the person overcome negative thoughts, or to try and help them be more optimistic and somehow get their energy levels up. But all of these can be very overwhelming for you, especially if you neglect your health to do that.

You can’t fix another person!

We can’t rescue a person from depression. We can offer them love and support, but recovery is up to them. Depression can be managed with the right treatment, and in certain cases, it can even be cured. This link has some interesting reading about our mental filters.

Can Depression be cured without medication and countless visits to psychiatrists? What are your thoughts?

I would recommend that you get yourself this e-book below (hard copy also available).

Sheila Walsh, best-selling author, popular Women of Faith speaker, and gifted recording artist, has a God-given passion for reaching out to women who are privately carrying around broken hearts. She knows what they are going through because she used to be one of them.

  • Are you lonely but too ashamed to open up?
  • Is there a voice inside you saying that you will never change, that you are not worthy of God’s love, that you will always be stuck as you are right now?

In The Heartache No One Sees, Sheila shows you why some people are able to access and maintain an absolute hope that cannot be shaken, while others lose it like the morning mist. You’re invited to join her on a prayer-filled, God-seeking journey to understand how to live in this world, with all its potential for hurt, pain, and fear, and still experience a deep healing that you are able to hold on to, no matter what life throws at you.

Another must read e-book by Sheila Walsh, In the Middle of the mess!

In the Middle of the Mess