Understanding Depression

Posted 01-08-2012

Is your child suffering from depression? Maybe it’s you that can’t shake the blues or the feeling of helplessness? It’s time to take back your life.

The first step is to educate yourself about depression. Here are a few facts about the mental illness that affects 1 in 10 adults in the US reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and occurs in 1 in 8 teens according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).

FAST FACTS
When someone is depressed, they are experiencing overwhelming feelings of sadness and hopelessness. They take no pleasure in things that used to make them happy and the feeling of apathy seeps in. It’s considered depression when these feelings last a minimum of 2 weeks.

Although more females are more likely to be depressed than males, depression can affect anyone regardless of age, race, income and educational status. Unfortunately, teenagers with depression can have other problems such as anxiety disorder, alcohol/drug abuse, relationship issues, and tendency to do poorly in school.

RECOGNIZING SYMPTOMS
Major depression has serious repercussions to a person’s daily life that prevents them from functioning normally in a social setting such as at school or in their families. Teens expressing five or more of the following symptoms, 1 of the first 2, almost every day, for at least 2 weeks have major depression:

• Sadness, irritability, feeling down & blue
• Disinterest or boredom in activities they used to enjoy
• Significant weight loss/gain or change in appetite
• Trouble falling asleep or sleeping too much
• Fatigue and a lack of energy
• Problems with concentrating, thinking or remembering
• Thoughts of death or planning and trying to commit suicide

To learn more about the diagnosis, treatment and warning signs of depression and suicide, check out the complete depression fact sheet compiled by the ACOG.

DEFEAT DEPRESSION
If you know someone who is dealing with depression or another mental illness, we can help. The Villa Orlando and Pasadena Villa’s Smoky Mountain Lodge are adult intensive psychiatric residential treatment centers for clients with serious mental illnesses. We also provide other individualized therapy programs, step-down residential programs, and less intensive mental health services, such as Community Residential Homes, Supportive Housing, Day Treatment Programs and Life Skills training. Pasadena Villa’s Outpatient Center in Raleigh, North Carolina offers partial hospitalization (PHP) and an intensive outpatient program (PHP). If you or someone you know may need mental health services, please complete our contact form or call us at 877-845-5235 for more information.

Source:

ACOG.org