7m Nigerians suffer stress, depression – Expert

A medical consultant and chairman of the Society of Family Physicians of Nigeria, Ekiti Zone, Dr.

Olabode Shabi, has said that about seven million Nigerians “are currently suff ering from mental health problems associated with stress and depression.

’ Speaking on the topic “Stress and Depression in Workplace: Strategic approach to management” at a lecture organised by the Information Chapel of the Nigerian Union of Journalists in Ekiti state, over the weekend in AdoEkiti, Shabi described stress as “an exaggeration of normal physical response to events and life challenges that make a person feel threatened or upset in some ways.

” According to him, that depression is a common mental health problem aff ecting 29 million in Africa out of an estimated 322 million people worldwide.

Shabi, who is also the Chief Consultant Family Health of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti, identifi ed major causes of stress in workplace to include ambiguity in the job schedule of workers, career development pressure, poor working environment lack of job security, fear of redundancy and early retirement.

Stressing that no human being had absolute immunity from depression under certain circumstances, Shabi highlighted major symptoms of the condition to include “persistent sad moods, loss of pleasure in usual activities, feeling of helplessness and guilt or worthlessness, fatigue or decreased energy, loss of memory and concentration, loss of decision-making capability, poor abstract reasoning, restlessness, irritability, sleep disturbance and loss in appetite or weight.

Leave a Reply