Home » Founder's Blog » October 3, 2015
October 3, 2015
- Oct, 03, 2015
- DG Gridley
- Founder's Blog
- 1 Comment.
I have never been diagnosed with depression, nor have I ever been depressed (just sad and very sad), but I know people who have been diagnosed with clinical depression and struggle with it mightily. I just came across this website and it seems to be a good one if you would like to know more: http://www.nndc.org/
In light of all the mass shootings and the statistics for the percentage of the population who have some form of depression or other mental illnesses, I think we should all be educated on the types, symptoms and treatments for mental illnesses.
People with mental illness are sick just like someone with cancer is sick, and they need help and treatment to get better. Our society should make this a priority, because unlike people with cancer, people with mental illnesses can make our lives miserable. In more ways than one.
If you have never been around a mentally ill person for any length of time, you have no idea what it is like. There is no way to describe it. But if you do have a daily relationship with someone with a mental illness, please forgive them and know that they do not mean to make your life miserable. They are sick. They need help. Please try to get them to get help. Of course, as you know if you do have a daily relationship with someone who has a mental illness, they do not think they need help, nor do they want to get help, or even explore the possibility. At least that has been my experience with the people I have known who have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
We really should stop posting these mass shootings all over the news.
On a lighter note….we want volunteers here at Aging With Grace! We want to share the beauty and magic of positive social interaction with all the volunteers we can get! If you know ANYONE who is available for any amount of time between the hours of 7:30 to 6:00 M-F and noon to six on Saturdays, please send them our way! We will train you and feed you delicious information and food.
By the way, it is very good for people with a mental illness to interact socially as long as they are not a danger to themselves or others. Social interaction is good for all of us. I believe God made us that way, and He wants us to help others as much as we are able.
May you and yours have a super blessed week ahead!
DG, you make some very important points here. As both a nurse and a social worker, I’ve helped care for individuals with mental illness. I have a specialty in gerontology and experience in an adult day care center as well as teaching at a KY university. Many of our university students do “internships” in different areas of interest and come from programs in social work, occupational and physical therapy, gerontology, business administration and any number of other programs. You might contact an area university and talk to someone about getting students to “intern” (called different things in different places) with you. I can’t guarantee anything, but it’s worth a try. Good luck!