Poor health status is one of the causes that leads to depression among student university. In this case, student likely to overlook about their mental and body condition. They think because of their strong and sturdy body can avoid them suffer from psychology disorder such as depression. University student always busy with their packed schedule and assignment. In this case, they neglected their health by focusing to their study. It is important to keep their body and mental health in a good condition. Firstly, insomnia is one of the causes that can affect student’s mental health. It is inability to sleep at night.
Commonly, normal people need seven to nine hours of sleep at a night. People with insomnia only slept three to four hours at a night and they will feel displeased with their sleep and usually experience several symptoms such as mood disturbance, low energy and fatigue. According to “Harvard Health Publishing,” 2 April 2019, says having sleep problems such as insomnia may increase risk for developing depression. It is shown that having insomnia can leads students to suffer from depression. In “KnowledgeE,” 13 May 2019, claims students that have sleeping problem is more likely to be depressed than those without sleeping problem. In this case, having sleeping problem can affect student’s mental health and it is not good for them.
In “New Straits Times,” 6 April 2019, declares from one in ten individuals in 2011 to one in five in 2016 Malaysian students suffer from mental health such as anxiety and depression and in state of restless, students usually experience heavy sweating at all the times, pounding heart and lack of sleep at night. It makes student feels uncomfortable and cannot have a good sleep during night also cannot concentrate during their lecture time. In this case, it is true that students commonly suffer from insomnia and can affect student’s health status.
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Depression is also caused by chemical imbalance in brain. This occur when there is either too much or too little of certain chemical called neurotransmitter in the brain. Neurotransmitters are chemical substances that transmit signals across a chemical synapse. “This idea of chemical imbalance has been useful that you have kind of chemical soup in which there may be too much dopamine or too little serotonin. “says Robert C. Malenka, M.D., Ph.D., a Brain and Behavior Research Foundation Scientific Council Member. Serotonin is a blood platelets and serum, which constricts the blood vessels and act as neurotransmitter that help regulate mood and social behaviour, appetite and sleep. Deficiency of serotonin can make student feel depressed, anxiousness and panic.
Subsequently, there are some area of the brain that is affected by depression such as hippocampus, thalamus and amygdala. The hippocampus is located in the medial temporal lobe of the brain and it regulates emotions. In “Harvard Health Publishing,” 6 April 2019, states the hippocampus is part of limbic system that has main role in processing long-term memory and it is smaller in some depressed people. Therefore, chemical imbalance also directly affect student to have depression when there either too much or too little of serotonin in their brain. Students will also experience sadness, worthlessness and emptiness that can make them feel depressed.
Sleep hygiene can prevent students suffer from insomnia. In this case, it is important to take care of their sleep to make sure of their well-being health status. Students can practice different kind of sleep hygiene habits to have a good sleep. Examples by exercise, reduce caffeine intake and limiting daytime naps. In “American Sleep Association,” 14 May 2019, states by exercise regularly every day before 2 p.m. can help people with sleep problems spend more time in deep sleep. That means students will have continuous sleep and awaken less often during their sleep at night. They also must reduce caffeine intake in their daily life such as coffee. Caffeine will cause students having difficulty initiating sleep.
It is made from chemical stimulant called trimethylxanthine that stimulate brain function. Students usually consume coffee because they want to stay awake to finish their assignments, but they did not aware the that it will bring harm to their health. Students will have mild headache after consuming it. Therefore, by limiting daytime naps can prevent students from having sleep problems at night. When we take naps, it will reduce the amount of sleep we need at night which may lead to insomnia. According to “National Sleep Foundation,” 2 April 2019, says limiting daytime naps up to 20-30 minutes can improve mood alertness and performance. In this case, students recommended to take naps during daytime but make sure their naps do not take over 30 minutes duration.
Antidepressant are medicines that used in the treatment of depression and other mental health conditions. Some of the most commonly prescribe medicines are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), atypical antidepressants, tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) can increase the level of serotonin in brain. It is created to balance chemical that is neurotransmitters in the brain that affect mood and emotions. It is safe for students that have chemical imbalance to take these medicines.
But in condition, students must see a psychiatrist before taking antidepressants because the psychiatrist are doctors who is specialize in mental health prescription and they are more likely to be familiar with the newest research on antidepressants. According to “NCBI,” 15 May 2019, “Without antidepressants: About 20 to 40 out of 100 people who took a placebo noticed an improvement in their symptoms within six to eight weeks. With antidepressants: About 40 to 60 out of 100 people who took an antidepressant noticed an improvement in their symptoms within six to eight weeks.”, it is shown that by taking antidepressants it will improved about 20 more out of 100 people that suffer from depression. Placebo is one of the antidepressants that used to treat depression symptoms. By taking antidepressants students can prevent their depression from getting severe.
References
- Sleep and Mental Health – Harvard Health Publishing
- Insomnia, Sleep Duration, and Depression Risk: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Cohort Studies – NCBI
- Depression and Sleep – National Sleep Foundation
- The relationship between sleep disturbances, depression, and executive functioning in college students – NCBI
