Hundreds of thousands of Hungarians suffer from it, but only a few dare to act

 Hundreds of thousands of Hungarians suffer from depression. There is no easy job for someone who wants to ask a professional to help. One should overcome not only the internal barriers, but the stigmata as well, hirado.hu wrote.

4 percent of the Hungarian population suffers from depression, and a further 2 percent is affected by other mental illnesses – this year’s report of the Central Statistics Office (KSH) reveals. So, roughly 600 thousand people live with these kind of problems, who struggle with psychological problems.

According to hirado.hu, the pioneering institution helps the patients involved, where free support is provided for people suffering from depression and other mental illnesses. And the question is, of course, what can be done with the childhood abuses?  Is it still a shame to visit a psychologist? Can you talk about it in a community?  – among others, Kossuth Radio’s program called Napkozben sought the answers to these questions.

A big step for the depressed

Csilla Sarkany-Balogh, professional manager of Forrashaz Care Center of Kispest said: first we should start breaking down the internal barriers and then external stigmas would pass away, too.

It is a very courageous step when someone reaches the point that one has to contact a doctor. Many people live with relationship, emotional problems, and unprocessed loss when one should need a specialist or should go to a place where they can talk. However, communities do not work too well, and not everybody belongs to a community outside the family, or it may occur that losses cannot be processed within the family. If we try to reach out the population, maybe we get ahead in this and there will be less diagnosed – she said.