Helping a Depressed Wife

A wife could be depressed because of various personal or interpersonal reasons. Depression could be a result of the load of expectations from her, lack of sensitivity and understanding of the husband, lack of appreciation for her, intruding in-laws, pressure to fulfill the roles in the martial house, lack of privacy and so on.

A healthy level of communication and awareness of each other will help to recognize signs of depression in the wife. Sometimes a wife could be vocal about her feelings and sometimes she may not communicate her feelings to her husband. At such times the alertness and sensitivity of the husband is important to understand that the wife is going through a depressive episode.

Getting to know the reasons is the first step towards addressing the problem. Listen to the wife with a patient ear. Do not jump to conclusions or lose temper over what she is saying. Do not be quick to retort and defend yourself.  Listen with an objective and unbiased mind to know the factors pushing her into depression.

Try to talk it over and explain your position to the wife. Apologize if you have been insensitive and neglectful towards her.

Try to undo the harm by changing your priorities and understanding the needs of your wife. If possible, take a break and get away with her to a new place. Spending time with each other, without any interference of influence of other family members can be a good change.

Do not blame the wife for her condition. Do not pinpoint all her faults to neutralize your faults. Showing her poorly will only make her feel worse and depress her further.

Give her an outlet to express her desires and vent out her feelings. Also see to it that her individuality and personality are not suppressed by the expectations and roles assigned to her in the house. Create a way for releasing her creative abilities too.

Do not control her life strictly. Be sensitive and supportive.