Depression.
No one really wants to talk about it, certainly few people want to admit they suffer from it and yet it’s likely by 2020 that it will be the major health issue facing Canada.
Few realize this more deeply than renowned psychiatrist-researcher Dr. Allan Young. He is working to change the stigma attached to the illness and help communities realize that they can do something to help those afflicted by this deadly condition. And on Tuesday, May 23rd Young will share his insights and answer questions on depression at MY Millennium Place, starting at 6 p.m.
"This is a bit like the elephant in the corner of the room that people don’t want to talk about," said Young from his Vancouver office at UBC Hospital where he is a professor, the LEEF Chair in Depression Research, and the associate director of the Institute of Mental Health.
"People are beginning to say, ‘look, it is there,’ so recognition and a change in public attitudes is extremely important.
"I believe if you could take away the stigma or substantially reduce it that would be one of the biggest things we could do. That is why things like the Whistler night are so important. The more we can get the message across that this is a very important health-care problem hopefully that is the way to combat stigma."
Young’s visit to Whistler has been organized by the Kelty Patrick Dennehy Foundation, which is committed to raising awareness of the magnitude of depression and the effect it has on individuals, families and communities.
The foundation, which was started by Kerry and Ginny Dennehy after their teenage son Kelty committed suicide in 2001, aims to remove stigma associated with depression by taking a leadership role in education, treatment and research.
The statistics around depression are alarming, though most people are unaware of them. Suicide is the second leading cause of death for teens in Canada and the third leading cause of teen deaths in the U.S.
The teen/youth suicides rates have tripled since 1970. Only 33-55 per cent of teens were identified by their doctors as having mental illness at the time of the death and only 15 per cent of suicide victims are in treatment at the time of their death.
Indeed, said Young, most suicidal people visit a health care professional in the week before they try to take or take their own life. But often the patient will mask their depression by complaining of other medical conditions and some health care professionals do not pick up on the hidden problem.
Generally, many people who are depressed do suffer from other ailments as the connection between the mental illness and the physical body is very strong, said Young.
"There is a huge overlap between physical ill health and depression and the two seem to feed off each other in a sort of pathological way," he said.
When people are depressed, said Young, it’s as if their body is in a permanent flight response from danger.
"…Your hormones are acting like you are acutely stressed all the time and that is bad for your body because your body is not meant to go full tilt like that all the time," he said.
"It suppresses the immune system, it is bad for the cardiovascular system and it is even bad for bone density."
There are no hard and fast rules about why people get depressed or what causes it. Research seems to suggest that having a hard life as a youngster can play a role, and stress is also a factor.
"Depression is not really understandable in everyday terms," said Young. "It can come on out of the blue and in someone who seems to have no reason for getting depressed whatsoever, and that occurs in perhaps as many as half the cases. Despite that there is a relationship to stress and stressful life events, so a recent stressful life event will precipitate depression in some people.
"…Depression affects every age range and it affects every part of society, so it does cost society a lot."
Generally speaking, post pubescent females are twice as likely to suffer from depression (15 per cent) as are males, until menopause when it levels off.
There are some effective treatments, said Young, but one of the most important things to be done is to recognize when depression occurs and get help. Sometimes the very nature of the illness makes that close to impossible for those in the clutches of the tortuous disease, so family, friends, and loved ones must step in and advocate.
And don’t be afraid to ask people you are worried about if they are depressed. In many cases they will be relieved to have someone to talk to about their feelings.
Whistler like every other community has people who suffer from depression in it. And issues unique to the resort, such as homesickness for transient workers, the cost of living, and affordable housing issues do play a role.
To help those in need the community has access to the Crisis Stabilization Team by calling 1-866-892-6365.
"Call this one number and we will help you navigate services," said Lee Erikson, CST coordinator and centralized mental health intake coordinator.
"The more people that are able to identify us as the entry point the more quickly we can get people to the necessary service."
Those who call the number will reach a nurse or a psychiatric nurse who can help them. Even if people are short on funds or come from out of province or out of country the crisis team will help on an emergency basis and then try and organize how to get help in the long term.
"We will provide service because we are an urgent care service and we will do mobile response and that is covered because it is an urgent care service," said Erikson.
She agrees with Young that getting the word out on what the condition is, reducing the stigma around it, and letting people know how they can access help are important steps in facing depression in the community.
She also applauds the Dennehy Foundation for its work.
"The Dennehy Foundation is working hard to raise awareness," she said.
