Ever feel like you are the only one who is sad in a world of happy people? Everyone experiences stress, sadness and anxiety from time to time – it’s part of life. These feelings often happen when you a lose a job, children move away from home, during divorce, with a death in the family, or during retirement. But when changes in mood and behavior interfere with one’s ability to work, sleep, eat, and enjoy once pleasurable activities, it could be a sign of depression.
This week, communities across the country are raising awareness about depression and mental illness. National Depression Screening Day, October 6, 2011, gives people the opportunity to take a free, anonymous questionnaire assessing their risk for mood and anxiety disorders and provides referral information for treatment.
5 things to know about depression:
1. Common symptoms
2. Treatment options
3. How you can help yourself
4. Contributors to depression in women
5. Depression is NOT a normal part of aging
4 things to do:
1. Test your knowledge of depression.
2. Assess your risk for depression, anonymously.
3. Understand depression in the elderly.
4. Learn about Meriter’s Adult Psychiatry and Child & Adolescent Psychiatry programs. Offering help and hope during life’s troubling times.
