It’s not uncommon to know someone who is dealing with depression.  If you’ve never experienced depression, you are rare. What medical research tells us is that depression is widespread and should not be stigmatized. New statistics note that mental health issues including depression affect at least 32.4% of the world’s population. But what is it, exactly? And how can we keep from getting depressed?

 

Depression is a prevalent and often misunderstood mental health condition that affects millions of adults worldwide. It can be debilitating, but with the right knowledge and support, it is manageable. It is characterized by persistent sadness, loss of interest or pleasure in activities, and a range of physical and emotional symptoms.

The causes are many. Physical triggers, such imbalances in brain chemistry, genetics, and brain injuries to name a few. Stressful life events, trauma, chronic illnesses, or substance abuse can also trigger or exacerbate depression. Low self-esteem, perfectionism, and a history of other mental health conditions may also contribute to depression. A frequent precipitating factor in depression is also chronic pain. Many older adults suffer from chronic pain. It’s important to be mindful of how this can drag you into depression. Avoiding the pitfall will take serious planning and the best of pain management techniques. These include non-traditional pain treatments, meditation, journaling, and consistent emotional support. One danger of traditional pain treatment is narcotic pain medication dependency. Doctors prescribe what they think will help, and it has side effects. They then add more medication to address the side effects. That can lead to other issues and more medication is added. Sometimes the overall result is depression.

When you get depressed, you may feel persistent sadness or emptiness, loss of interest in things you used to enjoy, fatigue and low energy, and changes in appetite or weight. You may have trouble sleeping either falling asleep or staying asleep or sleeping too much. You may feel hopelessness or helpless to change things. Depressed people often have difficulty concentrating or making decisions. At its worst, depressing leads to thoughts of death or suicide. Depression can be quite serious, and even life-threatening if a person who experiences it does not get the help they need.

This is a rotary service and safari travel experience curated by Melisa Prandi Children Foundation for rotarians and friends of rotary to visit Africa (Uganda) for charity work and an adventure safari experience in the wild. 

MSRR Members cleaning up Rotary Island at 2nd and Lincoln. 

Left to Right:

Culley Casey, Dameion Brown, Past Presidents Elsia Galawish and Michael Green, David Shawn. 

(Photographer: Susanne Karch)

 

 

Dear Rotary Home Team;

Wow! Thank you to you & your amazing Rotary Team. I'm so touched & appreciative that I was included to receive this Home Team help. 

Culley & Jane were super!  They helped me with a variety of things that I can’t do myself. Even something like filling & hanging my hummingbird feeder, is so invaluable to a women in my position. (After a stroke at age 41) I've been paralyzed on my left side, leaving me with the use of only one hand & lack of balance. 

Additionally I’m on disability, therefore I am grateful when a giving group of people such as your Rotary group volunteer to help me out with some gardening & a couple of odd jobs. I was so excited to finally have my roses pruned  & my sunshade installed onto my car’s windshield, which I’ve wanted done since I had my windshield replaced last summer. 

Please know the time each of you gives to people like myself is not only a great appreciation but it’s invaluable. Most of us don’t like to ask for help outright. However the way your organization offers your services to us, makes it so much more comfortable to receive your offerings... Thank you all for this! People don’t realize that it’s awkward to put people on the spot, but when it’s given through an offer, it is so special all around. Thanks to each of you! ~  

Jeanine Rossi