Based on the research in America, there are about 7%~12% men and 20%~25% women in their lives diagnosed as patients of severe depression. Unfortunately, some people will kill themselves resulting from the psychiatric disease of depression. In China, there are two million people who die of suicide every year based on the data from the government.

Recently, you may have also noticed in the news that some gifted people killed themselves due to suffering from depression. The Paypal company chief engineer Qing Gen Wang was the one among them. Harvard University undergraduate department head Evelynn Hammonds sent E-mails to encourage  students to contact the school counselors when needed after the student Wendy H. Chang hung herself in the dormitory. The others like several Gunn High School students in Palo Alto, California, laid themselves on railroads to be crushed by trains.

I feel so sad when I recall these tragedies and have to mention them here again. However, trying to find out the factors or roots and offering prevention and solution will be the focus on my blog. It is usually considered normal when people who have suffered the loss of their loved ones, health, beauty, marriage, or women who are experiencing menopause become depressive. In contrast, there are those with great gifts, who do suffer from severe depression. Why? When one’s self-esteem is based on the possession of certain qualities, instead of the authenticity of one’s own feelings, the person might have the chance to suffer from depression.

Next week, I’m going to talk about PERFECTIONISM which is a family system rule and a core culprit in breaking self-esteem. Perfectionism denies that we will often make mistakes. Perfectionism is involved whenever we take a norm or standard and absolutize it. Perfectionism can not only be seen in family systems but also in school systems and culture systems. I’m looking forward to having further discussions with you on perfectionism next time!

God bless,

Miriam White