Can I help?

إضغط هنا للإطـلاع باللغـه العربيـه

Sure. But how do you get a colleague to see the need for treatment and accept it?

• If your company provides a medical service, talk to them.
• Most companies will have a health and safety administrator. They should be able to help and should be concerned about the safety risks that might result from depression.
• If you are the boss, encourage them to see the doctor, but make sure the person knows that you will understand and support their treatment.
• If you are a peer, try lending a sympathetic ear. This will probably work best outside of the work environment. If you can get him/her to "open up," you can suggest they talk things out with a doctor.
• Maybe your company offers access to an advice bureau or counselling service that might be able to help.

It is really hard to say exactly what will work in any given situation. You do have to keep in mind that illness, particularly a mental illness, can threaten a person's job. Try to reassure them and remove the threat if it is within your power.

Try to make the person see that the biggest threat comes from not being treated.

When treatment does begin, everyone will need to be a bit patient. Improvement isn't going to happen overnight. It takes time. Even after the person seems quite well, you need to understand that they are not going to be completely well. You need to make allowances for this. Someone recovering from depression is likely to react poorly to stress or fatigue.

Do not be disappointed if you do not get much recognition for the help you have given. Appreciation of your help may only come many months down the line, or not at all. Depression distorts perception. In that state, a person may not be able to see what help has been given.