Resources
If you feel that you or your loved one is in a crisis, then call 911 or go to the closest emergency room.
National Alliance on Mental Illness: 937-299-3667 or www.nami-mc.org
Alzheimer's Association: 800-272-3900
Suicide Prevention-Dayton: 800-320-HELP (4357)
The American Psychological Association website contains a powerful and hopefully reassuring statement that reads, “while aging is an inevitable part of life, depression need not be part of it.”
However, though not a consequence of growing older, some later life challenges including losses, health issues and work related changes, may put an elder more at risk for becoming depressed. Depression is not a normal part of aging, and suspicions that a loved one is showing symptoms of depression should have these concerns identified to a health care professional to insure that interventions can be provided timely and effectively.
According to figures from the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), close to 6.5 million elders are affected by later life depression. Despite such a significant number only a small percentage of this group receive treatment for this illness. According to Stephen Bartels, at the Centers for Health and Aging and Health at Dartmouth College, undertreatment often occurs because depression in older adults may experience different symptoms than younger people. For example, weight loss may be more prevalent than with a younger cohort, a depressed elder may experience delusions, withdrawing from activities, vague pain complaints, voiced feelings of loneliness, memory loss, confusion and irritability. Underdiagnosis and inadequate treatment can also be a result of denial or a sense of shame from the elder who is experiencing negative mood changes along with the misguided belief that older people often have reason to be chronically down.
No single factor causes later life depression. Rather, as noted by many mental health care professionals, it is often a result a combination of physical changes, including alteration in brain chemistry, illness, along with psychological and social factors such as loss, life changing events, and lack of social support. Genetics may also be place an individual at increased risk for developing later life depression. Treatment options continue to expand and include medication and nonmedication management. The risks and benefits of these choices should be reviewed with ones physician.
If questioning later life depression, then it is highly encouraged to review symptoms with a physician to, ideally, pinpoint an accurate diagnosis of depression to help determine the most effective treatment plan. This may at times be easier said than done. According to data from the Mayo Clinic, early Alzheimer’s disease and depression share so many symptoms it can be difficult even for physicians to distinguish between the disorders. A study in the Journal “Neurology” found that some people who developed dementia had a higher level of depression symptoms before their dementia was diagnosed.
Navigating the aging process is not always easy, and many people will be confronted with the unfortunate reality of multiple losses along with other later life challenges. Sadness as a reaction to a life-altering event should be validated but also monitored. Most often this decline in mood is temporary with improvement over time. Should symptoms of depression remain or increase, however, it is strongly advised that the individual or their family/friends voice concerns, even when unsure, to a health care professional as soon as able. A lack of treatment increases the risk of having a significant negative impact on an elder’s physical and cognitive wellbeing. Conversely, reaching out for help can hopefully assist in preventing further decline while improving ones quality of life.
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