D epres s io n And Anx iety
Q.
Is depression a real thing or c an s om eonejust“shakeitoff” and feelbetter?
A.
I’m g oin g to hop u p on m y s oa p box for a few minutes…
I hea rd s om ethin g this pastweek thatmademea littleangry.An individual who should know better made the statement “depression is justfeeling s orry foryou rs elf.” W hile it is u n fortu n a te tha ta n yon e in the tw en ty-firs t cen tu ry wou ld hold s u ch a n u n in - formed belief, itis tragic thatthis person said itto someone who is depressed and will likely n otg ettrea ted foritn ow.
Iwork with depressed p eop le. Ica n tell you tha t while mostofthem feel worthless, it’s insulting to s a y they feel s orry for them s elves . A n d by the way,theyarealsonotlazy, weak, justtrying to get a tten tion , or a ctin g this wa y to g etd ru g s . Believe me, Iknow. They don’t wantdrugs.Theyjustwant to feel n orm a l.
Dep res s ion is on e ofthe mostresearched disorders ou tthere, a n d the p rep on - d era n ce of evid en ce in d icates withouta doubtthat itis real—and thatitcan ha ve very s eriou s con - sequences.Justlikeany d is ord er it ha s a s et of s ym p tom s we look for to diagnoseit.Theserange from ha vin g s leep p roblems towanting tocommit suicide. Depression has a ls o been p roven to a ffect p hys ica l hea lth in a very n eg a tivewa y.
Researchhas alsoshown thata depressed person willnotlikelyjust“getover it.” There a re a lotofhelp - fu l res ou rces — book s , in tern et a rticles , a n d the like—thatcan help someon e who is feelin g s a d or ‘blu e’ to feel better, bu t someone with major depression needs more thanthat.And,thankfully, help is a va ila ble.
Levi Tra n s ition s is on e of s evera l mental health agencies in the Hot S p rin g s a rea . They a ll p rovid e p rofes s ion a l ca re using licensed mental health professionals and m ed ica l p ers on n el to p rovid e m u ltid is cip lin a ry trea tmentfordepression. In addition,therearemany competenttherapists and cou n s elors who a re in p rivatepractice.
Ifyou believe tha tyou or a loved on e is d ep res s ed ,
pleasegiveusacallat501
622-3580. W e ca n ta lk withyou aboutadmission toourprogram,orwecan refer you to on e of the othercomp eten tp rovid ers in the a rea . You wou ld be undernoobligation—you d on ’teven ha ve to g ive u s yourname.Wejustwant to help .
And pleasedon’tbemisled bythosewhostillhold the a rcha ic belief tha t depression is “justfeeling s orry for you rs elf.” Tha t belief cou ld ha ve tra g ic con s eq u en ces .
Q.
W hat is Levi Transitions Counseling and w ho is itfor?
A.
Levi Transitions Outpatient Behavioral Hea lth p rovid es ou tp a tien t counseling foradults who sufferfromdepressionand a n xiety, a s well a s other disorders thatimpairtheir a bility to live n orm a l lives . The p rog ra m help s p eop le whoarefacing significant life is s u es in clu d in g los s of in d ep en d en ce, berea vement, relationship prob- lems,and difficultycoping with stress. Referrals to theprogram aremadeby fa m ily d octors , by va riou s loca l a g en cies , or by the in d ivid u a ls them s elves .
The g oa l of Tra n s ition s trea tm en tis to help clien ts reg a in p ea ce a n d s ta bility, as well as a sense of m ea n in g in theirlives . The focu s is n ot on ly on help - in g clien ts recoverfrom life problems, but also on helping them discover strengths and positive aspects oftheirlives that ca n en a ble them to m a in - ta in their s ta bility on ce they lea ve the p rog ra m . Transitions clinical and support staff work to maintain a safeand supp ortive en viron m en t in whichclients can improve.
If you or s om eon e you knowsuffersfromfeelings ofemptinessandsadness, difficulty sleeping (or sleeping too much), low en erg y, a n a bs en ce of feelin g p lea s u re, ra cin g thou g hts , d ifficu lty con - centrating, no appetite, negative self-worth, or thou g hts a bou t d yin g , pleasegiveTransitions a ca ll a t 622-3580. A p re- admission inquiry will be s ched u led to d eterm in e if Tra n s ition s s ervices ca n be help fu l to you .
S ervices tha t Levi Tra n s ition s p rovid es a re covered by M ed ica re a n d mostinsurances.Financial aid mayalsobeavailable.