Sport: way to fight against depression

It's not just the sports world that is shocked by the sudden death of Robert Enke, goalkeeper of the German football team. The 32 year old German footballer, threw himself under a train near Hanover. His wife Teresa confessed in tears at a press conference that the footballer was depressed. Robert Enke is unfortunately not the only athlete to suffer from depression. But it is surely the worst after he chosen to deliver this disease. Fitness.com talks about depression and explains how fitness can help to get by.

Depression is still a taboo in today's society. According to estimates, about 121 million people would be depressed in the world. It is estimated that in Western countries, 6% of the population suffers from depression. Sickness absence due to depression are the most frequent. It is also the main cause of suicides and more than 10% of people with major depression commit suicide.

Depressed people are depressed and sad for a long time. They put off the company and are no longer interested in social life. Sleep disorders, anxiety, feelings of guilt and inferiority are the most common symptoms of depression. Depressive suffered a slowdown in mental and physical actions.

The causes of depression are many and complex. They may be genetic or due to chronic stress. There is also cause of biological nature, such as lack of sunlight can cause depression. Furthermore, those addicted to alcohol and drugs and people already suffering from anxiety or phobias are more likely to develop depression.

Some traumas over a lifetime may be another reason for depression. This is most certainly the case of Robert Enke. In fact in 2006, his daughter died of a heart failure at the age of two years. His wife revealed that Robert Enke suffered from depression since 2003. The enormous pressure and stress constantly that professional football has to bear the intense media coverage of the sport, the performance must be constantly at the top level, especially for a goalkeeper with great ambitions in terms International: perhaps this could explain his actions. Sebastian Deisler in 2007 at the age of 27, player of the team of Bayern Munich and the German team player ends his career. Eight months later, it will reveal to the press the real reasons that led him to abandon his career, he also suffers from depression.

A healthy way to fight against depression still remains if sport is not sport practiced at a professional level. It is difficult to motivate depressed to move physically. But you should know that endorphins, the hormone of happiness is secreted upon exercise sports. This hormone acts very positively on people with depression. Doctors criticize the fact that the sport is not being used as a means to fight against depression. With medication and psychotherapy, it happens in most cases cure patients. But knowing that depression is a disease still taboo in society, it is difficult for them to admit depressive illness and thus be assisted by specialists. For it is not only in the world of sport, but also for other professional activities that people with depression are treated as not being resistant to stress and are even considered to be unusable.