Site Meter Mental & Emotional Health » Blog Archive » Depression in the Elderly - An Overview, I

Depression in the Elderly - An Overview, I

by

75483d.jpgLast week I mentioned that I was going to do a series on depression in the elderly population, and I’m just now getting around to it!

Many elderly individuals experience the death of a spouse, medical problems, financial troubles, and these things can all lead to depression, and lead to higher rates of depression in those who don’t have a strong support network (friends, family, coworkers even) surrounding them. This depression, however, is not a normal (or required) part of aging; in fact, more seniors (as it is with other humans) are happy with their lives even throughout big changes and troubles.

If you allow this elderly depression alone, it may prevent your grams from enjoying the life that she could have, and it’s proven to take a serious toll on grandpa’s physical health as well. However, if you learn to recognize the signs and symptoms of depression in the elderly population and then learn to help someone effectively, you may find your life (or your loved one’s life) remaining bright and cheery until the end!

Depression is a problem for many older adults and it seems to be mainly due to loss; a loss of independence, a loss of mobility, a loss of health, a loss of your life-long career and even a loss of someone you love. With these losses, it’s normal to feel sad, and even if the feelings of sadness last for months, it is considered normal. However, if you lose all hope and all joy, it’s not normal; it’s depression.

When I say “many adults,” I mean 2 million. 2 million (of the 35 million) Americans over the age of 65 live with full-blown depression according to the National Institute of Health. On top of that, there are 5 million elderly individuals who live with a less severe (half-blown?) form of the illness.

, ,


Posted in Depression, Elderly on December 15th, 2007

Link to this Entry

Recent Posts

Related Posts

One Response to “Depression in the Elderly - An Overview, I”

  1. Mental & Emotional Health » Blog Archive » Depression in the Elderly - An Overview, II Says:
    December 16th, 2007 at 8:10 am

    [...] in the Elderly - An Overview, II by Sarah Gould Continuing with my overview of depression in the elderly population, today I’d like to finish that up and then as the week progresses, we will address the causes [...]

Leave a Reply


About Mental & Emotional Health

Explore mental and emotional health issues including mood disorders, depression, anxiety and anger problems. We’ll also keep up with the latest scientific research on developments related to mental health. Stress, physical illnesses and pain can trigger negative feelings and despair but we’ll focus on how to cope through those difficult times.

Mental & Emotional Health Author(s)

NAVIGATE

LINKS

CATEGORIES

TOP COMMENTERS

RECENT COMMENTS

SUBSCRIBE

ARCHIVES

Blogging Flair

al.com - Alabama Blogs

 

Science & Health Channel Links

 

Science & Health Channel Posts

  • What The Heck Is Treatment Resistant Depression?
    This is a dreadfully named type of chronic depression. Please, someone in the medical community rename this thing. When you're depressed, you're always convinced that you cannot be cured or helped. [...]
  • Victoria's Secret? She's a Vegan!
    Victoria's Secret is no longer hiding in closet. The lingerie and beauty product brand is getting loud and proud about veganism. Pink Body is a new line of Victoria's Secret cosmetics - including [...]
  • I binged
    Yes. I am not all perfect and cured. I totally had a binge last night. It was my own fault. I had junk food lying around the house for the "future" and needless to say, I pounced on the food last [...]
  • Is Volumetrics for you?
    [caption id="attachment_756" align="alignnone" width="339" caption="Volumetrics "][/caption]"Free foods" are those that help you get more bang for your buck because they contain a lot of water, [...]
  • Psoriasis and Earache
    I'm going to be honest and beg the blogosphere for information of psoriasis and earache. I have psoriasis and now it seems to have spread to my right ear. It causes a dull ache, but not bad enough [...]
  • Dear Non-Vegans, Love Eccentric Vegan
    Eccentric Vegan compiled a great resource post, called "Dear Non-Vegans," all about why meat, eggs, all other animal products are not healthy, humane, or environmentally friendly on Vegan Soapbox. I [...]
  • Top Ten signs of Alzheimers Disease
    [caption id="attachment_1800" align="alignnone" width="67" caption="Alzheimers"][/caption]Memory loss that disrupts everyday life is not a normal part of aging. It may be a sign of Alzheimer's [...]
  • The best way to measure body fat
    [caption id="attachment_796" align="alignnone" width="104" caption="Tape Measure"][/caption]When does "putting on a few pounds" cross the line into needing to lose weight? Neither scale, BMI, pinch [...]
  • Exacts on how you too can run up expensive therapy bills for your children.
    Ok, so see, as I said, I’ve never been away from my children much.  And, I have missed not one, not two but on Saturday, I will have missed three of my son’s basketball games.  Never in [...]
  • Published Letter to the Editor
    My first letter to the editor was published this week in the Middle Tennessee State University student newspaper, Sidelines. Here's the published version of what I wrote in response to their article [...]

 

Hot Off The Press