Posts Tagged ‘Despair’

Many people don’t think about the elderly but they can also suffer from depression. In fact, due to the changes that occur in their lives, they are at an increased risk. If you have an elderly parent or friend, learn to identify the risks of depression and then get help.

Age itself can be a factor in depression. The body slows down and also begins to have problems as you age. The older generation is more prone to illnesses such as diabetes, stroke, heart disease, Alzheimer’s and dementia. In women, especially, bone loss can lead to debilitating breaks and fractures.

Many elderly people who suffer from depression have had major life changes to occur. They have lost loved ones or friends and the circle of social contacts get smaller each year of their life. Their children are grown and may not be around to spend time with them or take care of them.

The elderly are prone to taking a lot of medications for various conditions. Managing those medications and their side effects can lead to despair and hopelessness.

Other risk factors for the elderly include:

* Family history of depression and/or suicide
* Substance abuse
* Living in a nursing home
* Loss of independence
* Living alone
Elderly who live alone aren’t necessary alone. They may have a group of friends that they actively meet with. The persons to watch are those who are withdrawn from group activities and keep to themselves.

Those elderly persons who are at risk are also more likely to end their lives. Suicide may seem like an answer to their problems and a way for them to reunite with deceased spouses and friends. Suicide also becomes a choice when they are faced with terminal or debilitating illnesses that leave them almost totally dependent on others.

Don’t dismiss depression symptoms in the elderly as getting old. There could be a real problem beneath the surface and ignoring the signs can be fatal.

The discovery of genes has radically changed our view of how the human body – including the mind – functions, or in some cases, malfunctions. We also know that having a gene that scientists have linked to a particular a physical or mental condition isn’t the end of the world and genes don’t simply determine our lives and health.

Genes are like switches and they don’t switch themselves on and off. They need a trigger to activate them. Having a particular gene may predispose someone in a particular direction but often that is all it is. In relation to depression, though there may be genetic factors involved, to think of it as a genetic disease or disorder is premature, and in many cases, unhelpful, since it falsely implies that one’s fate is pre-ordained.

Genes and Depression

There is no such thing as a depression gene; many genetic conditions are the result of whole sets of genes, which are activated in certain environmental and life circumstances. However, there is something in the gene theory of depression. Studies of families, especially twins, suggest that depression may have some genetic roots, though which genes are involved remains unknown.

A candidate gene is one known to regulate serotonin, a chemical neurotransmitter involved in mood. People with it may be more susceptible to depression, but whether that will happen depends on a variety of interlocking factors.

Regardless of genetic makeup, anyone can become depressed if the circumstances are right (or rather, wrong). Sadness and despair can be normal reactions to hard times and the medical profession has been criticized for ‘medicalizing’ ordinary human unhappiness and prescribing unnecessary drugs. However, when depression is deep and enduring, sufferers can benefit from medical help.

If someone has a history of depression in their family that may usefully alert them to a possible genetic vulnerability. Swapping our supposed mental health genes is not currently an option, so sufferers concentrate on practical steps to management and recovery.