Anyone is a potential hostage-taker especially if depression has already set in making the person both suicidal and homicidal, a psychiatric expert Tuesday said.

Dr. Isagani Gonzales, public relations officer of Philippine Psychiatric Association (PPA) cited the case of people who went amock because of severe depression arising from problems that have already affected a huge part of their daily lives.

“Any hostage taker, especially planned, is like a kiss of death – they are ready to die and ready to kill,” he said in a conference prepared by the Philippine College of Physicians (PCP) in Quezon City Tuesday.

“If you examine people who went amock, they have a history of depression because of a big problem…If there is major depression, that is one symptom of depressive disorder and they are already suicidal or homicidal so they can kill and they can also kill themselves because they are already angry at the world and angry at themselves.”

Everybody goes through episodes of depression as it is a normal part of life. But we should watch out for people or loved ones who are demonstrating major depressive disorder, the expert noted.

Gonzales said this includes activities that render impairment on social, functional and intellectual facilities that result to poor reasoning and poor judgment.

“Not all persons who experience depression becomes violent but you can become violent…Depression is a normal feeling. We can become depressed at some point in our lives but if it’s a major depressive disorder, this actually drives the person to seek isolation. He or she is unable to work, unable to sleep or eat, sometimes they just stare blankly, walk slowly or suddenly burst into tears.”

Gonzales laments the stigma of consulting a psychiatrist in the country. But he said people who are experiencing major problems and are having a difficult time coping should consult a psychiatrist or at least talk it out with someone whom they really trust whether it be a friend or a relative.

Meanwhile, a crisis management specialist bared the three kinds of hostage takers: A criminal who goes into the situation by force or by circumstances; domestic hostage-taker and a crusader.