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People who feel depressed also very often feel alone. Some aren’t sure<span style="color: Red;">*</span>who to reach out to, who would understand, and who might even tell them, unhelpfully, that all they need to do was stop complaining.
National Depression Screening Day<span style="color: Red;">*</span>is here to help.
Thursday marks the 25th year since it first appeared on the national scene. The day<span style="color: Red;">*</span>of awareness includes events and a screening component offered at<span style="color: Red;">*</span>thousands of colleges nationwide, a well as at community-based organizations and military installations.
It’s run<span style="color: Red;">*</span>by<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Screening for Mental Health (SMH),<span style="color: Red;">*</span>which wants<span style="color: Red;">*</span>society to treat mental health with the same urgency and importance as physical health, <span style="color: Red;">*</span>
Students can go to the SMH<span style="color: Red;">*</span>college website to see if their school is participating, whether they offer in-person screenings, and how to choose the free “general screening” that can be done anonymously online and, importantly, is available<span style="color: Red;">*</span>year-round.
The University of Arizona is one of many universities across the country taking part in the day.
“We know<span style="color: Red;">*</span>how busy college students are,” says Debra Cox-Howard, a mental health clinician at Counseling and Psych Services at the university. “The beauty of doing an online screening is that it’s 24/7. They get feedback automatically.”
Director of the Clinical Services and Counseling Center at Waynesburg University in Waynesburg, Pa., Jane Owen, says she administers in-person screenings similar to the one found on the SMH website.
They’re “an indicator,” says Owen. “It shows this is ‘normal’ behavior (or) this may be getting into an area that’s not just everyday stuff.”
The highest percentage of people who say they’ve been diagnosed with<span style="color: Red;">*</span>depression and anxiety disorders fall into the 18-33 age group, according to a<span style="color: Red;">*</span>2012 online Stress in America survey by Harris Interactive for the American Psychological Association.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>The survey shows that 19% of those 18-33 reported feeling depressed, while the second-highest percentage, 14%, consisted of those 34-47.
The World Health Organization reports that depression affects over 350 million people worldwide. And according to 2009-2012 data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, posted at the<span style="color: Red;">*</span>National Center for Health Statistics<span style="color: Red;">*</span>website, 65% of Americans affected by depression had not seen a professional in 2012.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>
Holly Martin, a licensed psychologist and chief operating officer at Greenbriar Treatment Center, says she prefers to see patients in person but believes that online screenings can be a good first step.
“I think anytime someone is looking to gain self-awareness, that’s a positive thing,” says Martin. “It can certainly give you a suggestion if you should go and talk to someone.”
She cautions, however, that such screenings don’t allow professionals to read social and emotional cues.
“One of the things, if you look at the symptoms of depression, are with how the emotions are showing on your face,” says Martin. “You want to be with the person, you want to see them and talk with someone. … It gives them a connection with one other person and hopefully then they will get the help and stick with it, too.”
Director of programming at SMH, Michelle Holmberg, says,
“The stigma surrounding mental health is a tremendous barrier for those who need to seek treatment. We should all be taking our time to check in our mental health.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>If you need to find next steps doing these screenings will help you lead you there.”
According to Holmberg, in 2009 the University of Connecticut conducted research surrounding the effectiveness of SMH’s programs (it has several others as well). The study<span style="color: Red;">*</span>found that 55% of participants sought next steps and were more likely to seek treatment three months following the screening.
Holmberg stresses that these screenings aren’t diagnostic. After completing the online screening, your results will let you know if you may or may not want to connect with next steps, which includes referral information and other resources.
To learn how being diagnosed for depression can be life-changing, listen to Katherine Brummitt, a senior at Geneva College in Beaver Falls, Pa., Rachel Narasimhan, a senior at Waynesburg University, and Anthony Jarrell,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Waynesburg’s resident director,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>tell their stories.
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