Photo:VCG

Chinese netizens showed support for Chinese fantasy writer and novelist Yang Zhi, who is known by his pen name Jiang Nan, after he revealed on Thursday that he has been suffering from depression for a long time. 

"Because of depression, I have been exercising for a period of time and trying to return to a normal daily schedule, and have become better," Yang said, adding that he wanted to apologize for delaying the updates in his serial story Dragon Raja. 

He also explained that his depression was partly due to the fast-paced spread of the online novel and his dissatisfaction with the published version. 

The hashtag about his depression had earned 320 million views on Sina Weibo by Thursday. Many Chinese netizens showed their concern and encouraged him to recover.

"It is very stressful when writing a novel, especially an updated online novel. We hope you can recover soon and keep writing excellent stories," one Chinese netizen commented on Weibo. 

China has seen a rise in people suffering from depression and anxiety, said the National Health and Family Planning Commission, according to a report by the Xinhua News Agency. 

The number of people diagnosed with mental health issues is also a concern in South Korea, affecting some celebrities including singer Kang Daniel, Kim Hyun-ah and Choi Jin-ri who died at her apartment on October 14.

Shi Wenxue, a teacher at the Beijing Film Academy, told the Global Times on Thursday that according to data from the Korean National Statistics Agency in 2018, the number of suicides in South Korea in 2018 reached 13,670, and the number of suicides is 37.5 per day. 

"Not only the celebrities but everyone's physical and mental health should be protected," Shi said.