Anyone can experience depression whether male or female. Research on twins shows that genes determine 39% of the chance of getting depression and environmental factors determine 61% of whether or not you get depression. So, genetically, the odds are the same, yet women are more likely to be depressed than men. Nonetheless, in this blog I will go into more detail about what depression does to a man and how it can be treated
What is depression?
When you suffer from depression, it is impossible to just be happy or at least content on a daily basis. Depression generally has the following characteristics:
- Hopelessness
- No more interest in hobbies
- Social and emotional isolation
- Too much or too little sleep
- Eating too much, eating too little or eating only junk food
- Shame
- Guilt
- Sense of worthlessness
- Mood swings
- Irritability
- Agitation
- Anger
- Rage
- Blaming others for personal problems
- Feeling stuck
- Unexplained pain or malaise
- Feeling burdened by others
- More addictive behaviors
Is depression different for men than for women?
Generally, most people think that when someone is depressed they cry a lot, stay in bed all day, and eat improperly. While this is often the case, there is another way to be depressed.
Many men, on the contrary, are often impatient, easily irritated and suffer from anger. Because this is not much linked to depression, the man therefore quickly looks like just a jerk, or at least an unpleasant man.
There are also men who suffer more from the classic way of being depressed and there are also women who are depressed in the "male" way.
Only an unpleasant person is often not noticed as a depressed person.
Research also shows that emotional stress curbed by beliefs about masculinity causes depression to be overlooked more often in men than in women As a result, depression is also expressed differently than what depression is generally believed to look like.
Causes of depression in men
Why a person becomes depressed is not always clear. Prolonged stress and/or insomnia can lead to depression, that much is clear, but this is not necessarily the cause.
Research shows that low self-esteem and the loss of a parent during childhood are a greater factor in contributing to the development of depression in men than in women.
Age can also be a trigger for depression in men. Research shows that older men are more likely to suffer from depression than older women. This may also be because life is not going as desired or planned and then as a man you may feel a sense of losing control or even losing what you have built up in your younger years.
Effects of depression in men
Research shows that when young fathers are depressed it has a major impact on their children. 7 years later, having a depressed father right after birth can cause your child to suffer from mental disorders that cause behavioral problems or challenge the power of a parent or teacher, for example.
More personally, the consequences are also serious, for example, men are more likely to start using addictive substances whether it is drugs, booze, porn or gambling, and in an extreme case, men commit suicide (but female depressed patients do the same in extreme cases).
Treatment of depression in men
Of course, you can get antidepressants if you are depressed, but if you do not want this and prefer to get rid of your depression naturally, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and sometimes even couples therapy are mainly used.
Coping with the loss of a parent
Hypnosis is known to support cognitive behavioral therapy. Looking at the trigger of depression, low self-esteem and the loss of a parent as a child can both be treated with CBT.
Losing a parent in your childhood can be seen as a traumatic event. Trauma is generally treated with CBT or NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming). NLP is used to ensure that you can think back to the traumatic event without immediately becoming anxious again. This is done, for example, with anchoring.
Hypnotic suggestions for increased self-confidence
When you look at the cause of low self-esteem, hypnosis can certainly help restore it. There are numerous techniques to do this. One of the most well-known techniques is repeating hypnotic suggestions. This replaces beliefs that do not help you with beliefs that do help you.
For example, if your belief is:
"I am a man and therefore need to provide financial security for my family."
Can be the hypnotic suggestion:
"My wife is modern and understanding in difficult times and is doing her part," said Mr. K.
Or if your belief is:
"I have to live up to all expectations, even if it means working overtime."
Can be the hypnotic suggestion:
"It is better if I clearly state my boundaries, then everyone knows where they stand and I ensure quality."
Or if your belief is:
"I'm a strong man, and they don't cry."
Can be the hypnotic suggestion:
"A strong man seeks help when he is stuck."
These types of suggestions are often also given to you on an mp3 to listen to at home during self-hypnosis which enhances the effects.
Visualization for greater self-confidence
Another way to become more confident is through guided visualization. A guided visualization helps you spark your imagination. After all, you often have to see something in front of you first to believe that you can or have it. A guided visualization helps you with this.
A guided visualization for increased self-confidence can go as follows:
"You wake up feeling good. You take a few quiet breaths and relax your muscles. Then you get out of bed, take a refreshing shower and a healthy breakfast of toast and a piece of fruit with nice coffee/tea. You go to work and for once everything is along. You feel good, the traffic lights turn green quickly, the birds chirp happily along. At work, you greet your colleagues energetically and get to work. Things are along and you feel in the flow."
This is just an example of a guided visualization, depending on your insecurities you may get a different visualization.
Strength training for better hormone balance
Men are also under the influence of hormonal imbalance. The reason why most men become less muscular over time and develop a belly is because they stop exercising, in the process your testosterone levels decrease.
Doing strength training helps your body stay healthy and produce testosterone for a healthy male hormone balance. In addition, it can help if you do this with another man or men (with your friends, for example) so that you feel more connected to other men.
Evening strength training has the most effect for improving testosterone.
Research shows that feeling like "one of the men" reduces depressive symptoms.
Even for sports, hypnosis can help find the motivation to do so.
Depression for men can be experienced very differently than for women. For example, for men it is often something that infringes on their sense of masculinity. In addition, research shows that being happy is not always something men see as necessary. While it is better for your well-being and health. So not being happy is sometimes not seen as a problem, which is very unfortunate, because it is definitely a problem.
Hypnosis can help men change beliefs, process trauma and improve self-confidence so depression goes away and you can get back in the flow doing your thing.
Want to learn more about exactly how hypnosis works, how you can help yourself and others with it? Then come to a hypnosis playshop or attend another Hypnosis Institute Netherlands event.
Sources:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0890856709623947
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/204631
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/j.1440-1614.2005.01665.x
https://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/abs/10.1176/appi.ajp.163.1.115
https://bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12888-015-0397-x
http://psycnet.apa.org/record/2005-02518-007
https://www.webmd.com/men/features/exercise-and-testosterone#1
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1557988309335823
