"Faces of sadness. Depression in its various guises" - A masterful lecture that makes you think.
Last Saturday, as part of a series of masterclasses, a meeting was held on one of the most serious mental health challenges - depression. The theme of the event was a lecture entitled 'Faces of sadness. Depression in its various facets'. The event was initiated by Professor Ryszard Poprawa, to whom we would like to thank him for his involvement in organising the lecture.
Expert perspective of Prof. Dr. Jan Chodkiewicz
The speaker was Professor Jan Chodkiewicz, Ph. - recognised clinical psychologist, certified psychotherapist and specialist in addiction psychotherapy, who has been combining academic work with psychotherapeutic practice for more than 30 years, helping people with addiction problems and their families.
Professor Chodkiewicz shared his extensive knowledge and clinical and scientific experience, focusing on the complexity of the phenomenon of depression.
The different faces of depression and their consequences
The topic of the meeting was not only classical depressionbut also its less obvious 'faces'. The lecture provided an introduction to the issue, presenting both the classic symptoms of (internalising) depression - such as disorders of mood, motivation, cognitive function or somatic complaints - as well as the various variants of this disorder, occurring in different age groups and situational contexts, such as depression in children and adolescents, the elderly, postnatal, seasonal or existential depression.
Male depression, comorbidity and counteracting stigma
Particular attention was paid to externalisation depression, also known as 'male depression'. Professor Chodkiewicz discussed the so-called 'male depression'. gender paradox - juxtaposing the higher suicide rate among men with the higher diagnosis of depression in women - and pointed to specific forms of expression of this variety of depression: impulsivity, aggression, substance abuse or escape into work.
During the lecture issues related to the co-occurrence of depression with other mental disorders were also addressed, the diagnosis of this disorder and the importance of education and anti-stigma in the context of helping people struggling with depression.
We would like to thank Professor Jan Chodkiewicz for an extremely valuable lecture and Professor Ryszard Poprawa for his initiative and organisational support. The event certainly contributed to the knowledge of the our academic community and open up space for further reflection on this important topic.
