Chinesetolearn ♫ learn Mandarin in a fun way ♫

Mandarin Chinese, how to say “Jane was treated by the doctor for depression.”
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/listen-to19.mp3|titles=listen to]
珍因忧郁症接受那位医生的治疗。zhēn yīn yōuyùzhèng jiēshòu nà wèi yīshēng de zhìliáo . zhēn ( 珍 a female given name, Jane) yīn ( 因 conjunction, because) yōuyùzhèng ( 忧郁症 noun, depression) jiēshòu ( 接受 verb phrase, receive) nà ( 那 pronoun, that) wèi (位 measure word for person) yīshēng ( 医生 noun, doctor) de ( 的 particle to connect the attributive and the noun it modifies) zhìliáo ( 治疗 noun, treatment).
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/listen-to20.mp3|titles=listen to]
Are you feeling blue and depressed (沮 丧 的 [jŭsàng de] ) because of studying Chinese too hard? It is highly unlikely I know. So, it is good to know learning Chinese won’t make you sick; on the contrary, if you learn it through song singing, you might get tons of fun. Today let’s learn about some important and useful facts about depression. If you are a regular reader, then you know I like to write fun facts on certain things. However, I am not sure this post about depression can be fun facts though; after all, no one likes being sick.

What is depression? Or what is the difference between sadness and depression?

Have you ever felt sad, blue (抑 郁 的 [yìyù de] ), or discouraged (灰 心 的 ［huīxīn de］）sometimes? Surely you have, and I have too, for those unpleasant （ 使 人 不 愉 快 的 [shĭ rén bù yúkuài de] ） feelings are natural human emotions （感 情 [gănqíng] ）due to the fact that natural course of human life is a journey of hurdles and hassles.

You may feel sad when you did poorly on the Chinese test, got ditched by the love of your life, your best friend declared that you are on her mean list now, or your beloved pet died of cancer … You might feel that the sadness in some of those cases is much severe than just “sadness” one word can convey, and maybe “grief” （悲 痛 [bēitòng] ） or “heartbroken” （心 碎 的 [xīnsuì de] ） would be better to describe how you might be feeling at those moments. Good thing is things come and go, so do those sad emotions. Most of time people manage to deal with these feelings well and get over with them within a certain period of time and caring from others.

In comparing with sadness, depression is more than just sometimes feeling blue, sad, or down in the dumps. Depression is a very strong haunting mood which is characterized by inability to focus （ 集 中 ( 于 ) [jízhōng (yú)] ）, insomnia （失 眠 [shīmián] ）, extreme sadness, loss of appetite （食 欲 [shíyù] ）, strong discouragement （沮丧 ［jǔsàng ］）, despair （绝 望 [juéwàng] ）, or hopelessness （绝 望 [juéwàng] ）, helplessness （ 无 依 无 靠 [wúyīwúkào] ） lasts for weeks, months, or even longer. Depression not only will affect （影 响 [yĭngxiăng] ）a person’s mood, but also will drain your energy （精 力 [jīnglì] ）, motivation （动 机 [dòngjī] ）, focus on your task, and deprive your ability to enjoy the life.

Why do people get depressed?

Why do some people have depression? There are many causes behind each depression, and the causes might be — hereditary genes, living in a difficult family, other health issues, or social environment…
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/listen-to21.mp3|titles=listen to]
Research showed that depression is greatly related with the balance （ 平 衡 [pínghéng] ） of naturally occurring chemicals （化 学 物 质 ［huà xué wù zhì ］） in human brain. These chemicals, called neurotransmitters, dominate human mood （ 心 情 [xīnqíng] ）. There are many things that can affect brain’s production of neurotransmitters — including daylight and seasons, a difficult social environment, unpleasant events, and certain medical conditions.

Have you ever heard of SAD? Well, it is not the common sad we have been talking all along today, it is seasonal affective disorder (SAD). If you live in high latitude place, and have much shorter sunlight hours in winter, then compared with people live in the tropical regions, you would have more chances to develop SAD. If you live in places like Canada, Alaska or Iceland, SAD can be a good excuse for lousy things you did in winter, like did not not turn in homework on time, failed a class, or did not do your chores.

Since depression is so bad, let’s learn how we can do to help ourselves, just in case we might get it later on in life.

If people have a prolong period of sadness, it is important to seek help from a professional （ 专 业 的 [zhuānyè de] ） therapist （治 疗 专 家 [zhìliáo zhuānjiā] ） and support from friends and family. People suffer depression can also do things to help themselves.

There are some simple things we can do to induce a powerful effect on turning bad mood to a better one, such as daily exercise, eating healthy foods, and getting enough sleep. Try to make everyday busy with a lot of activities: practicing yoga, chatting with friends, listening to upbeat music, singing songs, doing craft, volunteering your time in hospital, school or any good cause organizations.

Finally, the most important thing of all — think positively, and always see things from the silver lining no matter it is a cloudy day or a pouring night.

Even Jessica Sanchez is wearing an oh so blue dress, but her smile is contagious 🙂 Do you think she will win this season’s American Idol show?

Jessica Sanchez: I Will Always Love You – Top 13 – AMERICAN IDOL SEASON 11

五月天 – 《你不是真正的快樂》For the lyrics, pinyin and English translation, see
http://www.chinesetolearn.com/?p=2044