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LRMC to offer free screening for depression

May is National Mental Health Month


LAPEER
— May is National Mental Health Month. To bring awareness of mental health issues, Lapeer County Community Mental Health (CMH), together with Lapeer Regional Medical Center (LRMC) will offer a free depression screening from 9 a.m. to noon, Monday, May 24, at the Great Lakes Cancer Institute – Lapeer.

Depression is a serious medical illness that comes in many forms, but it can be successfully treated. The screening is available for people of all ages; memory loss screening also will be provided for older adults.

“It is important to get screened and get the help you need if you think you may have depression, as depression can significantly interfere with your quality of life and sometimes lead to suicide,” said LRMC Clinical Psychologist Shai Brosh, Ph.D, LP. “In the past year alone, 12 people have died by suicide in Lapeer County.”

Many older adults also are concerned about losing their memory or developing one of the many dementias, according to Dr. Brosh.

“We will offer a memory loss screening to help identify early potential problems and to reassure those who may be experiencing normal age-related memory deficits but not dementia.”

CMH and LRMC offer some of following reasons why people should be screened for depression?

• Clinical depression is a serious medical illness.

• Clinical depression can lead to suicide.

• Sometimes people with depression mistakenly believe that the symptoms of depression are a “normal part of life.”

• Clinical depression affects men and women of all ages, races and socioeconomic groups.

• One in four women and one in 10 men will experience depression at some point during their lifetimes.

• Two-thirds of those suffering from the illness do not seek the necessary treatment.

• Depression can cooccur and complicate other medical conditions.

• More than 80 percent of all cases of clinical depression can be effectively treated with medication, psychotherapy or a combination of both.

Funding for the screen is provided by a Community Mental Health Block Grant from the Michigan Department of Community Health. The following is what you can expect:

Participation in the screening, which takes only a few minutes to complete, is voluntary. No appointment is necessary.

A clinical practitioner (usually a social worker, counselor or psychologist) will ask you a short series of questions and you are expected to respond to the questions. Results are available immediately for participants and their doctors.

Participants will learn about resources and how to get additional help or followup. Screenings are not the same as a diagnosis. The practitioner will make referrals for further evaluation and diagnosis if needed.

So, how do you know if you need a depression screening? Typical symptoms of depression may include: feeling sad for a long time; feeling helpless or hopeless; feeling worthless; repeated crying spells; change in sleep patterns; problems remembering; difficulty staying focused; significant appetite or weight change; presence of physical complaints that are not related to another medical condition; loss of ability to laugh or feel pleasure from regular activities; being easily irritated; considering suicide as a solution to your problems

You do not have to have every symptom on this list to have depression. If you are having one or more of these symptoms, especially if they are significant enough to interfere with your daily routine, you should consider a depression screen or talk to your health care professional.

If you have questions about the screening event, contact Melody Munro-Wolfe, LMSW, of CMH, at 810- 667-0500.

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