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Depression & Mental Health FAQs

US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated 40 million
Americans living today will suffer from major depressive illness during their lives.

Seasonal affective disorder is major depression that appears in the fall or winter and goes away in spring, thought to be caused by lack of sunlight.

Postpartum depression occurs within four weeks of a women giving childbirth. Most new mothers suffer from some form of the �baby blues.� Postpartum depression, by contrast, is major depression, thought to be triggered by changes in hormonal flows associated with childbirth.

Catatonic depression is a rare form of major depression characterized by (at least two): Stupor, excessive motor activity, extreme negativism, peculiarities in voluntary movement, and repetition of other people's words or actions. - mcmanweb.com

Psychotic depression is a rare form of depression characterized by delusions or hallucinations, such as believing you are someone you are not and hearing voices.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, approximately 18.8 million American adults, or about 9.5 percent of the US population age 18 and older in a given year, have a depressive disorder.
Depression is a chronic illness that exacts a significant toll on America's health and productivity. It affects more than 21 million American children and adults annually and is the leading cause of disability in the United States for individuals ages 15 to 44.

Lost productive time among U.S. workers due to depression is estimated to be in excess of $31 billion per year. Depression frequently co-occurs with a variety of medical illnesses such as heart disease, cancer, and chronic pain and is associated with poorer health status and prognosis. It is also the principal cause of the 30,000 suicides in the U.S. each year. In 2004, suicide was the 11^th leading cause of death in the United States, third among individuals 15-24.

According to the World Health Organization, depression is presently on track to becoming the world's second-most disabling disease (after heart disease) by the year 2020.

Depression is responsible for some $87 billion a year in lost productivity in the US (a conservative estimate), and according to Bank One, is responsible for most lost work days in its employees after pregnancy and childbirth.

Additionally, one million people worldwide die by their own hand, most as a result of a mood disorder. Finally, the linkage between depression and a host of physical illnesses makes it arguably the world's greatest killer.

Research presented at the 56th Annual Conference of the Canadian Psychiatric Association shows a marked link between bipolar disorder and migraines.

The odds of migraine in persons with bipolar disorder were 40% higher than the general population.

Data obtained from 36,984 people aged 15 and over, who screened positive for manic or depressive episodes with migraine, were compared against those who screened positive for mania but who didn�t suffer from migraines.

Amongst males, 14.9% of those with manic episodes were also diagnosed with migraines compared with 5.8% of the general population. Amongst females, 34.7% had both migraines and bipolar disorder compared with 14.7% who only had migraines.unquote.gif

While the research was skewed towards persons who were already diagnosed with bipolar disorders, what does it mean for people who suffer from migraines but who may have an undiagnosed bipolar disorder?

Migraines and headaches aren�t fully understood but the manifestations are very real and debilitating for their sufferers:

Throbbing pain
Nausea
Heightened sensitivity to light or sound
Seeing dots, wavy lines, flashing lights, or blind spots
Difficulty with speech, sensation, or movement

An estimated 2.1 million American adolescents have experienced major depression within the last year, according to a new comprehensive government study. Researchers surveyed more than 67,000 young people ages 12 to 17 and found that one in 12 had suffered from serious depression in the previous year.Nearly 13 percent of girls had struggled with depression, compared to less than 5 percent of boys. Odds of depression increased with age -- just 4 percent of 12-year-olds experienced depression but that climbed to 11 percent for older teens.

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Depression and Suicide

The Bleakness of Depression

"The bleakness of the landscape is unimaginable. It is as friendless and alien as a Dali painting. Ordinary concerns, such as work or friends, have no place here. Futility muffles thought; time elongates cruelly. Who is to blame for this situation? Those with depression think it must be them. Pointlessness and self-loathing govern them. So the natural final step is suicide. People with depression don�t kill themselves to frighten an errant boyfriend. They kill themselves because it is the obvious and right thing to do at that point. It is the only positive step they can think of."
-Kay McKall
an Ipswich (UK) general practitioner
and consumer with depression,
writing in the British Medical Journal
(NAMI Advocate, winter 2002)

Untreated depression is the #1 cause of suicide. Depression IS treatable.
Suicide IS preventable.

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Economic Crisis Increase Stress and Suicides

By Forum Admin
Published 07/8/2009
Depression and Suicide

By Forum Admin

	Jul 2009 An article published Online First and in a future edition of The Lancet reports that the rising rates of suicide and murders in the population are directly associated to the growing unemployment rates originated by the economic downturn. Another effect is the decline in road-traffic accidents. Active labor market programs aiming to maintain and reintegrate workers in jobs could tone down some of these unfavorable effects. The article is the work of Dr David Stuckler, of the University of Oxford, UK, and Professor Martin McKee, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK, and their team.

The Film: Exploring the Emotional Lives of Teenagers - Edie Magnus, Executive Producer

By Forum Admin
Published 06/22/2009
Depression and Suicide

By Forum Admin

	Cry For Help - Hamilton High The PBS Special Aired April 29th, 2009 Executive Producer, Edie Magnus April 20th, 2009 The Film: Exploring the Emotional Lives of Teenagers Edie Magnus, Executive Producer Dr. Chris Lucas, head of child psychiatry at New York University’s School of Medicine, says it best: “People only seem to pay attention when there is a major event and when a large number of kids die suddenly together. Whereas kids are dying all the time through gun violence or…though suicide, and there is not much attention paid to that.”

Youth Suicide Prevention: Physicians Can Make the Difference

By Forum Admin
Published 05/22/2009
Depression and Suicide

By Forum Admin

	Youth Suicide Prevention: Physicians Can Make the Difference A Suicide Cluster Scott Poland, EdD Published: 03/11/2009 A small Midwestern town in the fall of 2007 had 3 adolescent suicides in 2 months. That high a number in that short a period of time constitutes a suicide cluster. In response to the cluster, the community turned to guidelines developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).^[1] The guidelines emphasize that no single entity or agency alone can stop a youth suicide cluster and that teenagers are more susceptible to contagion than are any other age group. A suicide-response task force that included school leaders, clergy, mental-health representatives, law enforcement, and physicians was formed and a meeting held. At the meeting, a prominent pediatrician in the community broke down crying, explaining that all 3 teenage victims had seen her about physical ailments shortly before they died by suicide. This is not unusual; a common conclusion in the literature is that adult suicide victims often see their physicians before their deaths. This reality raises some critical questions about the role of physicians in suicide prevention:

Cry For Help - Adolescence Can Be A Difficult Time For Both Parent And Child

By Forum Admin
Published 05/17/2009
Depression and Suicide

By Forum Admin

	Adolescence can be a difficult time for both parent and child -- – but if your teen is feeling extremely sad, hopeless or worthless, he/she could be showing signs of a mental health problem. Mental illnesses are medical conditions, and they often first appear between the ages of 18 and 24. If they go untreated, these illnesses can lead to distress, and dangerous behaviors like substance abuse and thoughts of suicide. Some of the signs of a possible problem – as outlined by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration - are listed below.

The Film: Cry For Help -- Stacy's Story

By Lindsay
Published 05/16/2009
Depression and Suicide

By Lindsay

	Stacy Hollingsworth Stacy's Story In many ways, Stacy Hollingsworth was an exceptional teenager – an energetic young woman with talent in academics, sports, music and acting. Always smiling, she appeared – on the outside – to have it all. But on the inside, Stacy was suffering in ways that no one – not her parents, friends or teachers – ever knew. “It was the kind of pain where I literally wanted to curl up into a ball and fade away, or scream at the top of my lungs,” she recalls. “It felt like being a prisoner of war – your own war.” For six years – despite her success in academics, sports and acting - Stacy silently battled depression. At its worst, the illness paralyzed her with feelings of hopelessness, and caused her to spend hours crying in her bedroom.

Sleep Disturbances May Add to Suicidal Risk

By Forum Admin
Published 04/1/2009
Depression and Suicide

By Forum Admin

	Sleep Disturbances May Add to Suicidal Risk Have trouble sleeping? New research suggests that the worse your sleep problems get, the more likely you may be to having thoughts of suicide or planning a suicidal act. “People with two or more sleep symptoms were 2.6 times more likely to report a suicide attempt than those without any insomnia complaints,” said the study’s leader, Dr. Marcin Wojnar, a research fellow at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Michigan in the United States and Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the Department of Psychiatry at the Medical University of Warsaw in Poland. The World Health Organization estimates that about 877,000 people worldwide die by suicide every year. The UN health agency says surveys indicate that for every death by suicide, anywhere from 10-40 suicide attempts are made. Suicide has traditionally been associated as a symptom of severe depression

At-Risk Teens Find Help in Summer Jobs

By Lindsay
Published 03/30/2009
Depression and Suicide

By Lindsay

	At-Risk Teens Find Help in Summer Jobs 27 Mar 2009 A University of Iowa study found that when a friend of a friend attempts suicide, at-risk teens are more likely to seriously consider doing so. But at-risk teens are less likely to be suicidal if they hold summer jobs. In fact, summer employment is more of a deterrent than holding a job during the school year, attending church, participating in sports or living in a two-parent home, according to the research by Rob Baller, associate professor of sociology in the University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, who co-authored the study with Kelly Richardson, a data analyst at the Iowa City VA Medical Center.

Survey finds widespread problem demands new approach to treatment that half of college students consider suicide

By Lindsay
Published 08/29/2008
Depression and Suicide

By Lindsay

	Half of college students consider suicide Survey finds widespread problem demands new approach to treatment AUSTIN, Texas - More than half of American college students have considered suicide at some points in their lives, a new survey reveals.The survey, results of which were presented Sunday at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association in Boston, adds to the growing body of evidence that the prevalence of suicidal thoughts is far more widespread among America’s college students than it is among the population in general. By contrast, only 15.3 percent of Americans overall have had such thoughts, the World Health Organization’s World Mental Health Survey Initiative reported in February. The survey, part of a wider-ranging continuing study on student suicidal behaviors being conducted by David Drum, a professor of education psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, questioned 26,000 undergraduate and graduate students at 70 U.S. institutions. The results raise the startling suggestion that suicidal thoughts could be a common experience on par with substance abuse, depression and eating disorders, Drum said. The survey defined considering suicide as having at least one episode of suicidal thinking at some point. Slightly more than half of students said they fit that category, which is known as suicide ideation. When researchers asked about more serious episodes, 15 percent said they had “seriously considered” attempting suicide.

Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General

By Forum Admin
Published 04/29/2008
Depression and Suicide

By Forum Admin

	In children and adolescents, the most frequently diagnosed mood disorders are major depressive disorder, dysthymic disorder, and bipolar disorder. Because mood disorders such as depression substantially increase the risk of suicide, suicidal behavior is a matter of serious concern for clinicians who deal with the mental health problems of children and adolescents. The incidence of suicide attempts reaches a peak during the midadolescent years, and mortality from suicide, which increases steadily through the teens, is the third leading cause of death at that age (CDC, 1999; Hoyert et al., 1999). Although suicide cannot be defined as a mental disorder, the various risk factors—especially the presence of mood disorders—that predispose young people to such behavior are given special emphasis in this section, as is a discussion of the effectiveness of various forms of treatment. The evidence is strong that over 90 percent of children and adolescents who commit suicide have a mental disorder, as explained later in this section.

Suicide Warning Cut Antidepressant Use

By Forum Admin
Published 01/23/2008
Depression and Suicide

By Forum Admin

	Jan. 7, 2008 -- Warnings about suicide risk in youths taking antidepressants have affected the use of those drugs. New research shows that antidepressant use by kids and teens fell nearly 10% annually after the drugs got a "black box" warning -- the FDA's sternest warning -- about youth suicide risk.That news is based on data from Medco, one of the largest pharmacy benefit managers in the U.S. The data included more than 2 million people.The researchers analyzed antidepressant use by children aged 6-17 and adults before, during, and after FDA warnings on antidepressants and youth suicide risk came out in 2003 and 2004.From May 1, 2002 to June 19, 2003 -- before any warnings were put in place -- antidepressant use by youths rose by 36%.

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Medical News

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FDA antidepressant warnings;
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Depression Forums Announces Mental Health America's

Hailing Approval
of Federal Parity Legislation

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Suicide Prevention Llifeline

Economic Crisis Increase Stress and Suicides

Attachments

The Film: Exploring the Emotional Lives of Teenagers - Edie Magnus, Executive Producer

Attachments

Youth Suicide Prevention: Physicians Can Make the Difference

Youth Suicide Prevention: Physicians Can Make the Difference

A Suicide Cluster

Attachments

Cry For Help - Adolescence Can Be A Difficult Time For Both Parent And Child

Adolescence can be a difficult time for both parent and child --

Attachments

The Film: Cry For Help -- Stacy's Story

Stacy's Story

Attachments

Sleep Disturbances May Add to Suicidal Risk

Sleep Disturbances May Add to

Suicidal Risk

Attachments

At-Risk Teens Find Help in Summer Jobs

At-Risk Teens Find Help in Summer Jobs

Attachments

Survey finds widespread problem demands new approach to treatment that half of college students consider suicide

Half of college students consider suicide

Survey finds widespread problem demands new approach to treatment

Attachments

Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General

Attachments

Suicide Warning Cut Antidepressant Use

Attachments