The worst case of depression ever in my 30 years of practice- says , expert psychologist
Depression affects more than 10 million people globally.
A recent study showed that 7 out of 10 women suffer from depression.
11 years old in the USA are taking antidepressants.
Depression does not have to be this common. However, we cannot deny the reality because depression is creeping fast into everyone’s minds and lives. Yet, we are not taking therapy for it.
Ms. Meghna has been in the field of psychology for 30 years. She has spent more than 5 years acquiring the skills and training required to become an expert psychologist. Her 30 years of practice have introduced Meghna to many different human experiences and challenges.
“I have dealt with many cases. Whether it is anxiety, depression, stress, overthinking, personality disorders, low confidence, or any other life issues. My profession has revealed the uniqueness of human emotions and how each one of us has what it takes to make a happy and healthy life”
Her last line intrigued us. Do we really have what it takes to overcome depression and make the life of our dreams? If we do then why do we still find ourselves stuck and lost?
“When I started my practice, I was around 25 years old. I had, and still have, an intense passion and drive to help people heal themselves through therapy. I remember how disappointed and guilty I felt when a few of my clients left therapy halfway because they could not see any changes.
Fortunately, I had an amazing mentor at that time. She supported me and made me understand that it is normal to have such instances and that does not label me as a complete failure”
What Meghna shared with us is a common emotion that many of us go through. We are often focused on our failures and tend to forget all the times we have tasted success. However, growth requires us to accept our failures, recognize our mistakes and take everything that life throws at us and build a damn castle.
Meghna is an expert psychologist. She is well equipped with techniques on how one can build a positive mindset, overcome depression and focus on creating a healthier and happier life. Preceding that assumption, we dared to ask her about her biggest professional failure and how she overcame that.
“My biggest professional failure was also my biggest heartbreak. I still get goosebumps when I think about it. I had a client, let’s name her Tess for now. Tess suffered from clinical depression when she was in her teens. She was referred to me by one of her caretakers.
Tess had a traumatic childhood. Her father used to physically abuse her mother who eventually committed suicide. Her father dropped her at a random orphanage and just took off without ever looking back”
Such scenes are often seen in the movies but then again, these movies are inspired by real experiences. Meghna’s client Tess was only 15 years old when she came in for therapy to get help for depression and that in itself sounds heartbreaking to us.
“It was sad. As psychologists, we are trained to have a sense of detachment from our clients but we are human beings in the end. Seeing a 15 years old girl living in a highly toxic family environment, witnessing her mother’s death, and then finally being abandoned by her father was heavy on my heart too. She was suffering from depression. That little girl had so much buried in her. She had anger, shame, guilt, hurt, sadness and so much more inside of her”
Is it ever possible to recover from depression or from something that left us broken and defeated?
“She did recover from depression… Gradually. I mean at least I was able to see a little happiness and hope within her. The sessions we had together, were helping her to come to terms with her past. It was humbling to see that therapy was healing her”
If she was healing, then why did Meghna consider this case to be her biggest professional failure?
“She was in her teens. And like any other teen, she wanted to feel belonged and was loved. She started skipping school to hang out with one of the boys that she really liked. She was having some really great times and for the first time in her life she felt like she existed and that she mattered. I remember her sharing about this but never in detail.
Sadly, the relationship started taking a negative turn. The boy started avoiding her because she seemed ‘crazy’ and then eventually blocked her from everywhere. She again slumped back into depression and then one day I got the news that she had committed suicide. She had even left a note which said, “I am just like my mother so I deserve to die just like her”
Meghna stopped taking therapy for a few months after the tragic incident with Tess. Therapy takes a lot from the therapist as well. They are out there giving their time, energy, efforts, and emotions. Unfortunately, that is seldom recognized by others and then therapy is labeled as ‘expensive’ or overrated’
“I had to take that break. I held myself responsible for Tess’s death. I kept wondering what would have happened if she had recovered from her depression. It took time but I gradually made peace with the fact that as a professional I did everything in my capacity to ensure that she gets the best help.
Sometimes life can feel unfair. But to hold onto something that has already happened and cannot be changed is an act of injustice that you put yourself through. This was the worst case of depression in my 30 years of working as a psychologist. Tess was a victim of a traumatic childhood; one she could not escape from.
However, there have been many other cases of complete recovery and healing. In fact, I had a client who had attempted to commit suicide but now she successfully runs an NGO for victims of domestic violence. Another was healing from a broken relationship and then eventually finding fulfilling love.
I wish Tess had not given up. But I am really nobody to judge her pain and suffering. I began my practice because I believe in the power of therapy. It can and it has deeply transformed people’s lives and I want to continue doing that”
Tess’s story was heart-breaking and it left us wondering about the dire consequences of not having a strong support system. It is important to look within us and see if we are extending kindness and compassion toward others. It is necessary to learn how to create a safe space for one another, and to be there for each other without any judgments and obligations.
