by Jessica Walker and Allegra D'ambruoso
According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) estimates that 16.2 million U.S. adults had at least one major depressive episode. This represents 6.7 percent of the U.S. adult population. Depression is most common in ages 18 to 25 (10.9 percent) and in individuals belonging to two or more races (10.5 percent).
Today, October 8, is National Depression Screening Day, a time for raising awareness about the importance of depression screening and treatment, while helping eliminate some of the stigma surrounding depression and other mental health issues.
Parkway Central Library’s Social Services staff (in conjunction with DBHIDS and JFK) will be conducting free depression screenings outside the library's main doors from 1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. These screenings are confidential and open to anyone that comes to our table. This event will be adhering to current Covid-19 policies and safety practices.
In addition, here are some helpful reading recommendations and electronic resources you can access for free with your library card.
Print Resources for Adults
Depression: A Guide for the Newly Diagnosed by Lee H. Coleman, PhD, ABPP
A helpful pocket guide to navigating the first steps of treatment and getting symptoms under control right away. Addresses topics that people just diagnosed with depression want to know: Do I tell my friends and family, and if so, how? Should I take medication or try psychological treatments? How can I work up the motivation to change? This simple and straightforward guide aims to answer questions and offer skills that can help manage depression symptoms.
Managing Your Depression: What You Can Do to Feel Better by Susan J. Noonan, M.D., M.P.H.
As a physician who personally suffers from depression, Susan J. Noonan draws on her own expertise and empathy to create a guide for people who suffer from the disease. Explaining the basics of mental health―including sleep hygiene, diet and nutrition, exercise, routine and structure, and avoiding isolation―this book aims to empower people to participate in their own care, offering them a better chance of getting, and staying, well. Noonan’s depression management strategies draw on the best available educational resources, psychoeducational programs, seminars, expert health care providers, and patient experiences.
The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression by Andrew Solomon
The author offers a look at depression in which he draws on his own battle with the illness and interviews with fellow sufferers, researchers, doctors, and others to assess the complexities of the disease, its causes and symptoms, and available therapies. This book examines depression in personal, cultural, and scientific terms. The author also explores the thorny patch of moral and ethical questions posed by emerging biological explanations for mental illness. He takes readers on a journey into the most pervasive of family secrets and contributes to our understanding not only of mental illness but also of the human condition.
Black Pain: It Just Looks Like We're Not Hurting by Terrie M. Williams
Terrie Williams knows that Black people are hurting. She knows because she's one of them. Terrie had made it: she had launched her own public relations company with such clients as Eddie Murphy and Johnnie Cochran. Yet she was in constant pain, waking up in terror, overeating in search of relief. For thirty years she kept on her game face of success, exhausting herself daily to satisfy her clients' needs while neglecting her own. Terrie finally collapsed, staying in bed for days. She had no clue what was wrong or if there was a way out. She had hit rock bottom and she needed and got help. She learned her problem had a name—depression—and that many suffered from it, limping through their days, hiding their hurt. As she healed, her mission became clear: break the silence of this crippling taboo and help those who suffer.
Postpartum Depression:
One in seven mothers suffers from a disorder on the postpartum depression spectrum; another 20-30 percent of them deal with above-average anxiety. First published in 1994, this book became the go-to resource for postpartum depression. This second edition has been updated in an effort to help women and their partners sort through all the noise and myths to focus on getting the help they need.
Beyond the Baby Blues: Anxiety and Depression During and After Pregnancy by Rebecca Fox Starr
Anxiety and depression can be experienced during pregnancy, as well as post-partum, and the impact can be both debilitating and devastating. Fox Starr shares her personal story of marriage, motherhood, prenatal anxiety and depression, severe postpartum anxiety and depression, the recovery process, and hope for the future. Woven throughout the narrative is information and advice that addresses risk factors, warning signs, definitions, and recovery options.
Print Resources for Teens:
Teens Talk About Anxiety and Depression edited by Jennifer Landau
In real teen voices, this engaging book offers comfort and advice for young people dealing with their own mental health issues or those of a loved one. A compilation of true stories by young adults facing the challenges of anxiety and depression, this book features compelling first-person accounts of panic attacks, suicidal depression, and self-harm, among other topics. Each contributor brings a unique perspective to the discussion of mental illness, and the relatable tone helps readers connect with an issue of great relevance to their own lives.
Depression: A Teen's Guide to Survive and Thrive by Jacqueline B. Toner, Ph.D. and Claire A. B. Freeland, Ph.D.
This guide discusses depression and provides guidance on cognitive and behavioral therapy principles to help teens take a problem-solving, strategy-based approach to deal with depressed moods, thoughts, and behavior. Intended to serve as an adjunct to therapy, this is a very practical and easy-to-read book that is not overwhelming for teens.
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Don't) Call Me Crazy: 33 Voices Start the Conversation About Mental Health edited by Kelly Jensen
What does it mean to be crazy? Is using the word offensive? What happens when such a label gets attached to your everyday experiences? In order to understand mental health, we need to talk openly about it. Because there’s no single definition of crazy, there’s no single experience that embodies it, and the word itself means different things—wild? extreme? disturbed? passionate?—to different people. This book serves as a conversation starter and guide to a better understanding of how our mental health affects us every day. Thirty-three writers, athletes, and artists offer essays, lists, comics, and illustrations that explore their personal experiences with mental illness, how we do and do not talk about mental health, help for better understanding how every person’s brain is wired differently, and what, exactly, might make someone "crazy".
Print Resources for Children:
The Color Thief: A Family's Story of Depression written by Andrew Fusek Peters and Polly Peters; illustrated by Karin Littlewood
A child recounts his experience of losing his father to depression in this poignant and beautifully illustrated picture book. The boy's father disappears into a world without color. As the father seeks help, color begins to reappear, and with it, hope. An ideal book for parents and caregivers to share with children to help them make sense of the devastating effects that depression can cause.
What to Do When You're Cranky & Blue: A Guide for Kids by James J. Crist, PhD
Everyone feels "down" sometimes. Who wouldn’t feel blue if their best friend moved away or if they were being teased or bullied in school? Counselor and clinical psychologist James J. Crist has written a book that kids can turn to for support, encouragement, and ideas for coping when they feel bad, sad, grumpy, or lonely. Kids learn 10 "Blues Busters" to help shake those unhappy feelings. They also discover lots of ideas they can use to talk about feelings, take care of themselves, boost their self-esteem, make and keep friends, and enjoy their alone time. A special section addresses hard-to-handle problems like grief, roller-coaster feelings, and depression. Includes resources and a Note to Grown-Ups.
Emily’s Blue Period written by Cathleen Daly; illustrated by Lisa Brown
After her parents get divorced, Emily finds comfort in making and learning about art. Emily wants to be an artist. She likes painting and loves the way artists like Pablo Picasso mixed things up. Emily's life is a little mixed up right now. Her dad doesn't live at home anymore, and it feels like everything around her is changing.
Digital Resources
KidsHealth
KidsHealth is the most-visited site on the Web for information about health, behavior, and development from before birth through the teen years.
MedlinePlus
Learn about the latest treatments, drugs, or supplements; define medicals words; view videos; get the latest research, or find out about clinical trials.
Depression Management Course from Universal Class
An engaging course that offers an abundance of ideas for taking personal control over the nasty symptoms of depression.
Gale Health and Wellness Resource Center
Information on Fitness, Pregnancy, Medicine, Nutrition, Diseases, Public Health, Occupational Health.
Healthy Minds Philly
An online tool and resource designed to support and improve the mental health and well-being of all Philadelphians, regardless of zip code, insurance, or income status. Intended to look and feel different than traditional government sites, Healthy Minds Philly is a welcoming and inviting space with a full suite of wellness tools and options.
Streaming Film
My Depression: The Up and Down and Up of It
Both heartfelt and entertaining, this film uniquely illuminates the symptoms, emotions, and side effects of depression using animation, comedy, and music. The film helps to make a difficult and sometimes taboo topic more understandable, both for those who may be suffering from depression as well as family and friends of people with the disorder. My Depression takes viewers through an individual's journey from the early symptoms through the darkest moments, and the search to try to find help and light at the end of the tunnel. While the film uses humor to make the subject more accessible and combat the stigma associated with depression, it is also serious in its intent to show how difficult it is to live in a constant state of psychic pain and diminished energy. Although there is no definitive cure for depression, as the film illustrates, there are a variety of ways to alleviate the pain, survive depression, and move towards a positive, fulfilling life.
Podcast
Peter D. Kramer: Against Depression
Peter D. Kramer, a practicing psychiatrist and professor of psychiatry at Brown University, is the author of the international bestseller Listening to Prozac: A Psychiatrist Explores Mood-altering Drugs. The book was a catalyst for rethinking antidepressants and for looking at our culture, in which their use is so prevalent. In Against Depression, Kramer writes fiercely against the tradition of depression as the "heroic melancholy" and in support of the latest medical findings that indicate that depression is a disease with far-reaching health effects.
Thursday, October 8 from 1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m., free and confidential depression screenings will take place outside Parkway Central Library. For more information, please call 1-833-TALK FLP (825-5357).
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