When the dark clouds come

Author: Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Phuong Hoa

When Dark Clouds Gather

Dear brothers and sisters,

Many people in Vietnam and around the world have realized that depression is a terrible disease, but there are still many obstacles in understanding this disease deeply. Despite the warning bells from scientists and sociologists, the number of people committing suicide due to depression every year is still increasing and millions of people in the world in general and in Vietnam in particular, still have to face this disease. Recognizing that someone is depressed, or that we ourselves are depressed, is really not easy. And even after recognizing, we still encounter many confusions and obstacles when we want to help someone, or even help ourselves overcome the "dark clouds" of emotions. The loneliness, weakness, and helplessness of this type of emotion continue to cause many unlimited consequences for any age, especially for young people.

Furthermore, in the current situation, when documents and information about depression are lacking, unverified documents are rampant on social networks, along with understanding of health care in the community, and knowledge to support patients and relatives in caring for and treating the disease is not widely disseminated. The causes of the disease are increasing, and the only treatment we know, besides medicine, is only psychologists and doctors. We do not know or have forgotten that there is another method of psychological and social therapy and intervention from relatives, friends or the companionship of the patient during the days and years of fighting depression and anxiety.

How can we gain a true understanding of depression? Why do we get depressed? What should we do if we are depressed? How can we help a loved one overcome depression? Who can become depressed? And ultimately, are we depressed? These are questions that almost everyone has asked at some point in their lives. When the Clouds Gather is here to help answer these questions.

The biggest difference between “When the Dark Clouds Come” and other books and documents that have been on the market is that this small book is written with meticulous sharing and notes from the perspective of a scientist with personal experience in accompanying relatives through long periods of depression. Different from the conclusions and evidence of a mere researcher, the book contains small daily stories, helping readers visualize specific manifestations, specific daily emotional and behavioral developments, daily dialogues that a mother can use to help her son overcome depression, disruptions in daily family life; the sadness, the moments that relatives of people with depression have to face to encourage and maintain their own spirits.

30 stories, divided into 3 groups of behaviors, each story is accompanied by a short note so that readers can easily remember. These are also the stories and notes that have been posted in Serena Land - a closed group of the Beautiful Mind VN forum, a forum on depression with more than 18,000 members, and have been deeply welcomed and thanked by the members of this forum. Therefore, the book is desired to be published by the members of the forum.

The author of “When the dark clouds come” is Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Phuong Hoa, a sister, a psychotherapist, and also an advisor of the Beautiful Mind VN forum. She is a friend, a companion of many patients in the fight against depression and anxiety. With the desire to share and spread some experiences in fighting depression - the disease of the century - with young people and their parents, and with those who still have a vague concept of this disease, she uses scientific knowledge to rewrite stories that happen in daily life, giving specific examples through how to behave in each problematic situation, but with everyday language, so that everyone interested can refer to it.

This is the third book in the applied psychology series of Anbooks. With the philosophy of bringing Vietnamese essence to Vietnamese people, Anbooks is constantly looking for authors with profound knowledge and experience, topics necessary for society and ways to convey messages that are close and easy to understand. Anbooks has accompanied the author in the process of making this book.

“When the dark clouds come” is a handbook for parents who are fighting with their children against depression, which sometimes seems helpless. The book is also a series of short stories that make patients who are alone suddenly realize that they have missed the most effective medicine in the long journey that this disease pursues: a spiritual medicine, a medicine of sharing and understanding; a medicine of correct understanding, important enough awareness about the disease, in a simple way that no scientific document can replace.

Anbooks and author Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Phuong Hoa hope that after reading this book, readers will stop questioning themselves and those around them, and stop searching for documents of unknown origin on social networks about depression. We also believe that this book will answer most of the questions and confusion, and will reaffirm what we have denied for a long time: depression is not a simple disease, it is much more frightening than we can imagine. And those who are unfortunate enough to have this disease, they really need us. They are really afraid of having to face depression alone. As the author shared in the book: "When our children say they have problems, it means they are really suffering, really need our help. Even if they cannot speak out, but close the door, lock themselves in their room, cry incessantly, condemn their parents, or on the contrary, condemn themselves, or threaten to commit suicide... then they are not "pretending", but they are crying for help!

Anbooks and the author, Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Phuong Hoa, along with her colleagues and friends who have accompanied her throughout the process of making this book, do not have any great ambitions, but only hope that it will be like a "small psychologist" who always stands by the unfortunate people with the disease, along with their families, relatives and friends, with sincere encouragement, advice and efforts in the journey of fighting depression and anxiety.