$100 billion are spent for medical expenses, lost wages and lost productivity, according to National Institutes of Health, and it’s all because of pain. This proves that things are not what they seem, where certain individuals look perfectly healthy, but suffer from such a pain inside. To add insult to the injury, they are sometimes labels as “addicts” by some people and even physicians because there are some addictive drugs are used to tolerate pain.

Glenda Dysktra, the assistant manager of PainAid, had several experiences about it. Starting as a volunteer for American Pain Foundation, she endured painful instances where she could no longer move, leaving her unproductive. And Dystktra is not alone. In fact, there are 76 million of Americans suffer from various kinds of pain and diseases, according to the said foundation.

Dykstra, together with Susan Sanford of Urbandale – a person who had similar experience with Dykstra led a program to trigger the consciousness of the residents of Iowa about pain management. These two friends were assigned by American Pain Foundation’s Advocacy Workshop.

“It’s an invisible disability,” Sanford said about chronic pain. “It’s a hidden epidemic. We’re hoping to bring about more awareness of what a huge issue this is,” Sanford contends.

 To read the entire article, go to:

http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071114/INDIANOLA01/711140417/-1/SPORTS09

Okay. You are depressed. You are willing to take prozac if your doctor prescribes it and you determined to undergo a psychotherapy for the betterment of your well-being. You have your wallet ready for spending some bucks and arrange your schedule for your sessions. But wait, those are not the kind of preparations that you should really do…. because there are more important things that you should prepare….

1. Opening yourself up. Once you decide that you will undergo such therapy, you should consider that you are going to open up to someone you don’t know. Your shrink, despite his/her profession, is still a stranger, and if you have “trust issues,” you better let go of them, for it will be pointless if you are not letting out all of your burden.

2. Getting back to those moments. Once you and your psychologist starts to talk about your life, you are going to look back some of the painful days that you once had – even the most devastating ones. There can be tears and anger, but you need to release it too by telling your shrink everything about it.

3. Cooperation. Your shrink might give you a series of tasks that you need to do. When this takes place, you have to follow his/her instructions and cooperate.

Once the essence of these things have sunk in, it means that you really are ready for psychotherapy. However, bear in mind that it may take time for recovery and healing process. And when this is all done, you’d be someone you never thought you’d be.

An effective way to combat depression, especially among teenagers, is a combination of Prozac medication and psychotherapy. A study from The Duke University has supported this statement in their published issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

One out of eight teenagers is detected to have clinical depression due to hereditary factors (depression can also be passed through genes), peer pressure, loss, failure, etc. Some of them gets healed by undergoing to cognitive therapies and taking anti-depressants, while the others, who are misinformed or clueless about their psychological situation sinks in pain, or worse, commits suicide.

Prozac, for those of you who have less knowledge on this matter is a drug called fluoxetine hydrochloride that works as an anti-depressant. It is a type of serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) that increases serotonin in the body, improving the psychological health of the patient. It has been prescribed since 1986 for depressed patients. Because of its effectiveness, it’s been stated that psychotherapy would not be that helpful if prozac isn’t prescribed.

Psychotherapy, on the other hand, works as a psychological support for the depressed patient. A professional or a psychiatrist conducts series of sessions to discuss about one’s personal situation and treats its “depressing cases.”

It is in the nature of human beings to feel sad in different times. Loss, break-up, nostalgia, failure, among other things are the reasons for sadness. But, if it lingers in you for a long time, then, it is no longer considered normal. And worse, it may something that you should be worried of – for it might be a psychological disorder that we can just call “depression.”

Clearly, “depression” is something people wrongly use in several conversations. It’s a psychological state where a person experiences deep sadness or has very low self-esteem. There are times when people have no idea that they are already manifesting signs of depression, thinking that it is normal to feel such way. But, as I said, it is a psychological disorder and needs to be healed, before it gets worse.

But before you get anxious with your psychological condition, you need to know the signs of depression first before jumping into conclusion that you might be clinically depressed….

1. Low self-esteem. One of the strongest factor of having depression is lack of self-worth and low self-esteem. You think that you are a failure and a worthless individual who cannot do anything good.

2. Abnormal eating and sleeping patterns. You got such a good sleep last week but now, you are having trouble to have one. Irregular sleeping habit can imply that you are having some disturbances deep inside you which causes you to lose sleep or have a smooth one. Same thing applies to irregular eating patterns, where it can become an outlet for a strong emotion or the loss of appetite can indicate that something deeply affects it.

3. Lack of concentration. Difficulty in focusing on something can suggest an emotional disturbance.

4. Suicidal tendencies. A very dangerous factor than can cause the life of the depressed. Because of extreme feeling of worthlessness, guilt, or anxiety, the person thinks that the only way to escape pain is death.

There are also biological factor in acquiring depression like an insufficient amount of serotonin, or the “happy hormone,” in the body. On the other hand, once these factors are all present in your situation, then it’s best to treat it right away, with psychotherapy and a professional helping you out.

Once again, tons of tissue papers are piled in the trash can, filled with my tears. You see, I am a very emotional girl who gets deeply touched with almost everything. Show me a dead dog and I will weep like crazy. On the other hand, these days have been more emotional to me. My friend’s aunt just got coma. Visiting her with my friend made me realize what suffering looked like. No offense to my friend, but her aunt seemed quite lifeless. None of her body parts were responsive, except her head. All she can do is to make little glances and gentle moans to assure us that she’s understanding our talks.

Like me, my friend is emotional too. I know it’s really hard for her. And because I love her, I am also experiencing the same pain. God knows how poignant this can be, and I just can’t imagine what would I feel if that kind of situation struck my life. I just wish that would never happen.

Darn, even the thought of it is painful. But I realized that there are actually two things that I can call real suffering:

Losing someone you love. This is a living hell. You’d wish that it was you who’s dead, not the person you hold dearly. Nothing is as painful as staying alive without him/her by your side. Some people say that it’s okay because that person lingers in our soul. And I say that it’s nothing but a screwed up cliché to help us escape the fact that we lose something important that we will never gain.

Comatose. Clearly, my visit on my friend’s aunt influenced me on my perception about suffering. It’s a physical, psychological, mental, and emotional torture that affects both of the sick and his/her loved ones. If you had this, you’d wish you’re dead, because living in a world of corners, hospital machineries, and dextrose is a screwed up existence worse than hell. Furthermore, what would make you more hurt is seeing your loved one suffer because you are bed-ridden and idle, just waiting for Jack the Reaper to fetch you.

Exceeding your limits to achieve your goal can be excruciating, especially when it’s failure you meet in the end, and not that success you are dreaming about. And later, it can hit you with pain and frustration. Because it seems like the end of everything, hopes can be difficult to find and there can be more struggles in gong back to the road you once take.

Frustrations can be too tough to handle, so here are some tips on how to beat them before it hits you and puts you in low self-esteem.

“Let frustration be your motivation.” This is a statement that encourages optimism among those who are frustrated. Instead of getting down from failure, put your head up and use it as an inspiration to get better.

Reflect on what happened. “What went wrong?” Ask yourself this question and it will help you reflect on your strengths and weaknesses. And since you’re using that frustration as your motivation, you will be working on your weakness until it becomes your strength.

Failure is a part of the process. Accept the fact that it’s not always that you get the best things in life. Remember the famous phrase, “Life is like a wheel,” where there will be times when you are not on top. So, if things don’t go according to your expectations, accept it whole-heartedly because it’s part of your betterment.

I never thought the simple question “What if,” can give so much impact to me, piercing my heart with pain. This question always pops in my head when I did a mistake, or rather a regret that I may no longer be able to take it back. It even sucks more than committing a big mistake, for at least I’ll have the chance to make up for it. But when regret is made, I guess I can’t do anything but mop around and ask myself with “What if.”

For those who have lived their lives without any regrets, well, I salute you for having a wonderful existence. But for us who have some regrets, well, I do hope that one day, we find a great way to deal with them…. and maybe…. just maybe…. we will be able to take it back.

Because regret is one of the most poignant thing that can happen to one’s life, here are some ideas as to how it can be an emotional burden:

“Shoulda, woulda, coulda.” This is an RnB song by Beverly Knight. Though it doesn’t express much about regret, but its title has already hit its essence. In fact it is similar to the question “What if,” only that this phrase has a larger impact on people who have regrets. Just thinking about the possible answers to this piercing phrase already gives an idea on how painful regrets can be.

Wishing to turn back time. It’s impossible, and the only thing we can do is wish that we have the power to bring back the hands of time. In that way, at least we wouldn’t be committing something that we’d regret.

The difficulty of acceptance. Since we can no longer take back what we did and it’s hard to take it back, acceptance will be the last thing in our mind. As we wallow, question ourselves, and wish to do something that is clearly impossible, it seems that we can never accept the fact that “it” already happened. And well, you know how hard it would be like dying without learning how to accept…..

The best thing to avoid regrets is to think carefully before doing something, especially if it will create a larger impact on the people. That is just one of the things that I learned from having regrets. And if mistakes are already done, I guess the greatest way to deal with it is to admit that you made a mistake, accept it, and do something about it…. before it becomes something painful…. like regrets….

“I’m Anthony.” These were the first words you said to us. Simple as your words were, it didn’t affect me even just a bit, though your presence was as intimidating as your witty deduction of my friends’ characteristics. Because your appearance became stronger than before, my friends expressed their admiration with their jaw open. I, on the other hand, remained still and composed. I had to admit that I was stunned to know that your thinking ability was similar to mine, but that didn’t bother me; if there were another person who could take great actions even at the most complicated times, I didn’t care.

Nevertheless, there was something about you that intrigued me. Certainly, it wasn’t your impressive intellect. It was something else.

Moments later, you gained the trust of my friends. I was happy, though deep down, there was something that stopped my mind from being silent. It was your eyes that kept me from thinking, and when I looked at it, I suddenly found myself in the world of nothingness. It was as though your vacant expression brought me into this world, where I couldn’t even find questions to ask myself. It was just your eyes…. and this empty world that you’re showing me.

The moon shone brightly, and it was at this moment when I realized that I was drawn to your silence. You’re nothing but a person of mystery, Anthony, yet it struck me like a pistol. I never knew how, but my realization showed me that I was happy to be in this vacant world…. as long as it was you who showed it. And little by little, this empty place has turned into something meaningful. Could I be more drawn to your silent and mysterious persona?

I already knew the answer…. but it wasn’t something that I wanted to accept.

No. Not for someone like me, who has tragically lost the person most dear to me.

We never really had interaction Anthony, except those simple glances. It was short, yet it gave me a strong feeling that our emotions were the same. We’re both drawn to each other, like our worlds mirror one another. We should be really close, you know, but we couldn’t accept the simplicity of the situation…. that we held each other dearly. No, not for someone like you, who never experienced what risk felt like.

So I guess we could never be with each other, no matter how much we wish we could be together. Even though our feelings pull us like a strong magnet, we tried to push it away…. because you couldn’t afford to experience pain…. because I couldn’t afford to lose again.

I punch my blood-stained hand at the wall, my teeth gritted with anger. I break my coffee table because I couldn’t understand my girlfriend’s mood swing. And as I lay my eyes on this broken table, I make my wrist soaked with my own blood, as I regret doing it. I starved myself just to save extra dollars for that expensive coffee table, and now that it’s gone, I have no idea what to do next except inflict pain with myself. I just want to release this.

Such action is caused by my aggression. How do I become like this, I have no idea. Except for this idea that was once shared by my smart sister, a psychology-obsessed girl who liked to explain my aggressive behavior based on the principles she learned in school. She told me that according a certain study states that aggression can be triggered by programs that showcase violence (Aronson, Wilson, & Akert, 2005). Being a fanatic of action films, I can’t help but agree to her statement. It may sound too intellectual for a careless brat like me, but I guess my continuous support for programs that show people nailing and killing each other might have caused me to act like this. I do admit that it can easily be reflected when I get mad or when I am stressed. And this time I unconsciously imitate a move from a gangster in a show. He was beating his enemy with all his might. And there I am, doing the same thing he did, only this time, I am not punching a person; it’s my coffee table.

I hugged my knees as I my tears streamed down my face. My small room turned into a space as large as oblivion, and everything around me appeared vacant and still. It was a problem that tortured me. At that moment, I didn’t know what to do, except to hug my knees and and cry.

Being as introvert as I always am, this is the first and the last thing I do when something painful happens to me. I know this burden can be lifted once I shared it to someone, but it is something that I refuse to do. I never know how to deal with it, except to keep it with myself.

On the other hand, I survived such moments thanks to my friends. Their companion is enough to keep me going. Their simple way of affection means that they are here, a sign of friendship that I value most.

There were those days when my friends pat me on my back when they I couldn’t make put my head up. And there were squeezes in my hand to remind me that despite my introvert personality, despite my silence, they could feel my sadness, and that would be their way to show me how much they care.

I once read from a magazine that touch is a form of therapy. And the affection I received from my friends is a fact that supports this statement. I don’t know if I someday, I could directly tell them what i really feel, or find a way to cope with something that hurts me. But, as long as I have their affection, I don’t think I’ll be down and mope for a long time. As I said, their companionship, especially their affection is enough to keep me going.