Reprinted from the Health District's quarterly publication mailed to district residents (Summer 2001)

Despite the availability of effective therapies, many cases of depression go unrecognized and untreated, often because people struggling with depression don’t know the symptoms, think depression will go away on its own or are embarrassed to talk about how they’re feeling. For these people, the Internet offers a potential first step toward treatment.

An abundance of mental health-related web sites allows individuals (or their loved ones) to easily and privately learn more about depression and its treatment without fear of embarrassment. One of these sites, depression-screening.org, even offers a confidential online test to help determine whether individuals are experiencing symptoms of clinical depression and could benefit from care by a mental health professional.

Depression-screening.org is sponsored by the National Mental Health Association, the country’s oldest non-profit mental health advocacy group. Besides screening, the site offers a comprehensive overview of depression, with separate sections devoted to causes, symptoms and treatment options. 

A section titled “Depression can affect anyone” details how the illness impacts different groups of people, including women, older adults, Hispanics and those who experience depression in conjunction with other major illnesses such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. There’s even a section with personal stories (and video clips) from people who battled and beat depression. 

The actual online screening uses the same brief questionnaire taken by thousands of people across the country each year on National Depression Screening Day. (This same screening is also offered on a year-round basis: call Connections at 221-5551.)

The depression screening does not provide a definitive diagnosis of clinical depression; only a trained mental health professional can do that. It also is not intended for use by people under age 18 or those experiencing a suicidal crisis.

However, the test can identify key symptoms of depression that suggest an individual seek further evaluation.

A physician or mental health professional is probably the best source for additional information on diagnosis and treatment, but depression-screening.org does offer an extensive list of other online resources dealing with depression and mental health issues.