Thursday, June 14, 2012
Depression
A friend of mine who has a life threatening lung condition asked me to write something for his blog about depression. It was not unusual to see depression in our clients who had developmental disabilities. This is what I wrote for him:
Disability
and Depression
In my years of working with adults with
developmental disabilities, I also dealt with many people with physical
disabilities and with mental illness. Sometimes, they had all three! One thing
I learned for sure is that you don’t have to have a developmental disability to
have other disabilities. People who have an onset of a severe physical
disability, whether it’s an obvious disability such as the loss of a limb or
your sight, or less noticeable such as heart trouble or the loss of lung
function, can easily slip into depression. And depression is serious stuff.
We all get ‘depressed” at times, but when feelings
of intense sadness – including feeling helpless, hopeless, and worthless – last
for days to weeks and keeps a person from functioning normally, mild depression
may become clinical depression. Depression carries a high risk of suicide.
Anyone who expresses suicidal thoughts, even jokingly, should be taken very
seriously!
Do not suggest to a depressed person that they just
“get over it.” They can’t. Provide emotional support. What a person who has
depression needs most is compassion and understanding. Telling them to “snap
out of it” or “lighten up” are awful things to say. The best things to say are
“How can I help you?” or “Look, I will be here for you. I won’t leave you to
face this on your own.”
Usually, depressed people lie about their
depression, so if someone says, “Are you OK?” they will probably say “Yes,” but
you have to make sure that they can tell you how they really feel. Look for
behavioral signs – they say “Yes,” but then they draw into themselves and can’t
even face you. They probably aren’t really OK.
Explain that asking for help does not mean that they
are weak or sick or crazy. On the contrary, it takes both courage and wisdom to
ask for help. Help them to understand that they have taken a big step just by
asking for, and accepting, your help. Encourage them when they take that big
step!
Fighting depression can take time, and may require
professional help from a mental health professional and/or medications
(antidepressants) such as Zoloft, Prozac, Paxil, or Cymbalta. Check with your doctor before starting any
medication! For more information check
the National Institute of Mental Health at www.nimh.nih.gov
.
My friend is Jim McClain and his blog is at http://1footinthegrave.com.
