Millions diagnosed with clinical depression each year in U.S.

Dr. Terry A Rondberg

Special to The Village News

Everybody feels sad once in a while. Depression, on the other hand, is a complex state characterized by profound sadness, sluggishness, feelings of worthlessness, and a loss of interest in social activities. There are 15 million people in the U.S. diagnosed with clinical depression annually.

Feeling down sometimes is a normal part of life. But when you're obsessed with sadness or hopelessness so much that it keeps you from living life like you want to, this behavior is a sign of clinical depression. An estimated seven percent of adults will experience it, according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

Even with this significant sign, it's very difficult for a depressed person to know if they have the disease. Almost all symptoms of depression are a common experience for most people at one time or another. But if you've been dealing with the symptoms daily for two weeks, if they've interfered with the way you normally function, and if they prevent you from working or being a responsible parent or friend, it may be time for you to take action.

Depression is more common than cancer, AIDS and diabetes combined. Around 400,000 people attempt suicide in the U.S. every year.

Even though depression is a common and severe problem, many people don't know much about depression or suicide – including who's at greatest risk, why, and when they are most vulnerable.

Compared to sea level, suicide rates are 70 percent higher in areas where a person’s home is higher than 2,000 meters in elevation, the NIMH said. According to one study, the higher a person’s home is the greater their risk of suicide.

White men over the age of 85 are considered high risk. The rate for 85-year-old white males is 49.8 deaths per 100,000, compared with about 14 deaths per 100,000 in people over 65, and 11 deaths per 100,000 in the general population.

Teens remain a high-risk group. One in five high school students said they have considered suicide in the past year and one in 12 high school students attempt to take their own life. The suicide rate for 15- to 19-year-olds is 6.9 deaths per 100,000 people.

Suicide is more common among whites in the U.S. than Hispanics, blacks or Asians. No one is certain why whites are at a higher risk. It could have to do with a difference in social confirmation.

The only group at higher risk is Alaskan Natives and Native Americans, who have a suicide rate of 14.3 deaths per 100,000, compared to 13.5 deaths per 100,000 for whites, and about five to six deaths per 100,000 for other groups.

Depression, creativity and suicide have long been associated, so it is no shock that some of history's most creative individuals were adversely affected by mental illness. Depression damaged great minds like Charles Dickens, Tennessee Williams and John Keats.

Many famous writers committed suicide, including Ernest Hemingway, David Foster Wallace and Sylvia Plath. These writers had something in common – they all wrote in first person, which is considered to be a sign of possible risk for suicide.

Two out of three people who commit suicide are depressed at the time they take their life. Alcoholism plays a huge role in one out of three suicides. With more active screening and treatment, depression carries less shame than it once did, but it remains one of the greatest risk factors for suicide. A family history of depression increases the chance of a child will suffer from depression tenfold. A robust social support is known to lower suicide risk when friends and family are available and supportive.

Wealthy countries based on their gross domestic product, including Japan, Russia and France, have among the highest rates of suicide, while some of the lowest rates are found in Latin American countries, including the Dominican Republic and Brazil. The wealthy countries report suicides two to three times as high as in the U.S.

About 54 out of every 100,000 men in Russia commit suicide annually. The region's high consumption of alcohol is suspected to be a major cause associated with these statistics. Auspiciously, only one in every 25 attempts actually results in death.

If you are concerned about someone, don't enable them to have easy access to medications or guns. If possible, we want to make it more difficult for them to act on a persistent suicidal thought.

There are not a lot of ways to prevent suicide. However, treatment of any psychiatric disorder is imperative and can reduce suicidal thoughts especially among older individuals.

Many doctors are concerned that antidepressants may actually raise the risk of suicide among patients under the age of 25, especially during the first few weeks of therapy.

A person who calls a suicide hotline has a better chance of not killing themselves. Since people have been reaching out and using this kind of support it is working. You can see this among veterans in recent years in response to increased publicity.

Veterans can call the general hotline at (800) 273-TALK and press “1.”

While Wednesdays are famous for being a rough day, Tuesdays have been found in some studies to be the deadliest for suicides; however, some doctors and researchers identified a distinctly high peak on Mondays. Recent research found most suicides fall on Mondays.

Prevention is always the best choice. Meditation, counseling and developing a spiritual life are all very important factors to maintaining a wellness lifestyle. We cannot separate your emotional or mental aspect of who you are from your body. A healthy holistic approach to emotional wellbeing always supports body, mind and spirit. This support can sustain anyone of us for life.

For more information on wellness care, visit www.temeculawellnesscenter.com or call Temecula Wellness Center at (951) 699-5000.