William Penn Life, 2000 (35. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2000-08-01 / 8. szám
y///////j Ditch the blues Depression in the elderly is treatable; early intervention by family crucial by Carla Garnett The National Institutes of Health Word on Health Lately, Jim has noticed his 73-year-old mother is not herself. She isn't sleeping through the night, and is often irritable during the day. She doesn't want to play her weekly bridge game. In fact, she hardly seems interested in any of her usual routine. Her temper is short. Small annoyances set her off. When asked, she assures Jim she's fine, just a little down these days. Jim wonders if this is just normal for a senior citizen. It is not normal, according to research supported by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Jim's mom is showing signs of depression, a common illness among elders. Depression is not a normal part of aging. "Typically, when an older person no longer feels engaged and seems to stop enjoying life for longer than two weeks, it's time to seek medical help," says Dr. Charles Reynolds, director of the Late-Life Depression Clinic at the University of Pittsburgh. Warning signals family and friends should look for include chronic sleep problems and inability to rest, excessive worrying, increasing dependency, withdrawal from friends and / or normal activities, hypochondria and complaints of chronic aches and pains that cannot be attributed to other disorders. "Family members are key in getting elders into treatment, because too often elders don't recognize depression in themselves," Dr. Reynolds says. Many senior citizens will not discuss a mental health problem with their doctors because they don't want the term "depression" associated with them. Dr. Reynolds also says1' many doctors may be too pressed fór time to ask about a person's emotional state, and many of depression's symptoms are often mistakenly attributed to some other disorder. Only one in six elders with clinical depression get diagnosed and treated for the illness, according to the National Institutes of Health. Although research suggests that rates of depression decrease with age, some researchers predict that when the Baby Boom generation reaches older ages their rates of depression will be higher than the current generations of older persons. A Word to the wise... It’s important that senior citizensand their family members-be able to identify the signs of depression. If the following symptoms continue for more than two weeks, you need to seek medical help from a geriatric specialist, who is trained to treat elders: • Insomnia • Excessive worry • Inability to complete normal routine • Irritability, short-temperedness • Hypochondria • Withdrawal from family, friends and/or normal activities • Chronic aches or pains that cannot be attributed to other disorders. • Increased dependence on family In addition, if a senior citizen begins to show signs of hopelessness or expresses concern that he or she has become a burden, help should be sought immediately. The actual number of older people with clinical depression may depend on where they are living, Dr. Reynolds says. An NIMH study found that two to three percent of elderly people living in the general community—not in hospitals or nursing homes-may be clinically depressed. However, eight to 10 percent of seniors who visit primary care clinics may fit the diagnosis for clinical depression, between 20 and 25 ercent of older people in hospitals ave depression and one in three senior citizens living in nursing homes may be suffering from the illness. Especially susceptible to clinical depression are elders who are recently bereaved and those who have had other serious health problems. The steps to handling depression are easy to remember, for both seniors and their loved ones: 1) Recognize that depression is not a normal part of aging and take symptoms seriously; 2) Seek information from individuals and organizations experienced in helping the elderly; 3) Mobilize social support from relatives and friends; and 4) Most importantly, get treated promptly. ^ Health Links For more information about depression in senior citizens and its treatment, call the National Institute of Mental Health at: I -800-421 -42II or visit the NIMH on the Internet: http://www.nimh.nih.gov William Pena Lile, August 2000 5
