Depression And The Elderly Summary

Aging Media Review:
“Depression and the Elderly” by Heidi Stevens
Katarzyna Wiley
University of Maryland Baltimore County

In the article, Depression and the Elderly, Stevens points out that the elderly are more likely to have depression. Stevens gives the statistic that approximately 20 percent of the population that is over the age of 55 is going to endure mental health concerns (Stevens, 2013). This could be because the elderly is not receiving the proper care that they should be receiving for having mental health issues. Even though people believe that healthy means that you are free from diseases or an actual illness that is not at all what it means. To be healthy is to be physically and mentally healthy. The brain is
According to the American Psychological Association is has been found that less than 3 percent of the population over the age of 55 are actually seeing a mental health professional (Stevens, 2013). This is concerning because the elderly is experiencing depression which is not just stronger sadness it is a terrible illness. According to the American Psychological Association mild depression can lower a person’s immunity and can make the body be less likely to fight against infections and cancers (Stevens, 2013). In the article, Stevens interviewed Richard Birkel and he said that the guidelines for treating diabetes are urging physicians to test for depression just like with heart disease, hearing loss, and eyesight loss(Stevens,2013). One factor that might have led to their depression could be that the elderly grew up in a generation that was told to basically get over it and grow up(Stevens,2013). They were told that you had to deal with your own issues and if you absolutely needed to go to other family members (Stevens, 2013). The main reason that very few elderlies go to a mental health care provider is because it was frowned upon in the past because having a mental illness was viewed as being a shame or that something was completely wrong with you if you had a mental illness. When they were younger their parents did not have the abundance of resources that is available now for them. So
For the elderly they will mainly focus on physical health instead of mental health because it is often looked at as lesser or not as important. Even though the suicide rate for elderly males is higher than the general population. The reason behind this insane statistic is that the way that generation was brought up which differs from the newer generation. The way the elderly was brought up they did not have the resources that are so helpful so doctors today. Growing up they did not have money for a therapist. If they actually did find enough money for a therapist the procedure to figure out what was wrong with them was very long and actually painful. Though health care professionals should try to help the elderly as much as they can they cannot truly fix what is already broken. Elderly are not able to truly trust a health care professional because of all of the problems that they have had in the past. Therefore, the elderly will have to try to make their mental health as good as their physical heath. It has been suggested that religion can actually help their mental