The Qatari Authors’ Forum continued its Ramadan activities by presenting the third episode of the Psychological Agenda Initiative by Dr. Khaled Abdul-Jabbar, through the Microsoft Teams Program. He addressed a topic entitled “Major Depression Disorder (MDD) and the New Corona Crisis”. He explained the causes and effects of this type of depression and provided a set of solutions and advice to overcome it.
In his episode, Dr. Khaled Abdul-Jabbar discussed depression in general and its forms and types. He  explained that depressive disorders according to the new classification, which is a reference for diagnostic criteria in mental disorders is divided into: disoriented mood disorder, MDD (episode topic), continuous depressive disorder, and bad mood disorder Premenstrual bleeding, drug-induced depressive disorder. There is also depressive disorders due to another medical conditions, or other specific depressive disorders, and unspecified depressive disorders.
He explained the differences between all of these types, stressing that not everyone who feels depression necessarily suffers from depression, knowing that there are many criteria and methods of evaluation to reach the correct diagnosis. He presented proportions through some of the video slides, explaining that women are more vulnerable to depression than men at a rate of 2 to 1. He also stressed that there are three ages in which cases of depression increase: the first is 15 to 19 years, the second is 25 to 29 years, while the third is during the 40s.
Dr. Khaled Abdel-Jabbar reviewed the symptoms that are present in a patient with MDD. He explained that they are 9 symptoms, 5 of which must be available in the patient in order for the diagnosis to be made properly. This is provided that this diagnosis is two weeks after the occurrence of such symptoms. He added that these symptoms must be proven not to be the result of other diseases or medications. He identified these symptoms as: excessive sleep, loss of energy and feeling tired, increased or decreased appetite and weight, feelings of guilt, psychomotor agitation or lethargy, low concentration, decreased interest or enjoyment of activities. He also touched during his speech on the cases that can suffer from suicidal thoughts, noting that these cases often suffer from low mood and lack of interest in activities.
About the possible results that could occur from going through that crisis, he affirmed that the person who suffers from “MDD” suffers from a disruption in social, academic and professional functions, as well as the inability to carry out any activities he had been accustomed to doing in the past. He further stressed that depression never means merely feeling depressed and distressed and identified the causes of depression in: moral and religious aspects. The treatment depends on the promotion of values and the causes include broken families and marital disputes, which requires social initiatives, as well as psychological pressures and need psychological treatment. There is the biological hereditary aspect too. It is worth mentioning that each of them may have an effect on the other. He also emphasized that medications can only be used in the case of the organic aspect. Moreover, at the end of his speech, Dr. Khaled Abdul-Jabbar gave a set of advice for psychotherapists referring to methods of cognitive and behavioural treatment, stressing the need to identify cognitive and behavioural skills and using a schedule of activities during the treatment phase, as well as examples that explain everything that he talked about.