Free Depression Screenings Offered

Ventura County residents can learn an important health statistic during National Depression Screening Day on Oct. 5: their depression score.

Ventura marriage and family therapist Paul Booth, who will host the screening, said county residents should care about their depression score for a number of reasons.

“Recent studies show that heart attack survivors with major depression have a three to four times greater risk of dying within six months than those who do notsuffer from depression,” Booth said.

The World Health Organization estimates that by 2020, unipolar major depression will be the second-most burdensome illness in the world, surpassing respiratory infections and tuberculosis, Booth said. Depression is expected to become the second leading cause of disability worldwide by the same year, second only to heart disease.

Symptoms of depression include a feeling of sadness, a loss of pleasure in usual activities, changes in sleep and appetite, hopelessness, guilt, inability to concentrate and thoughts of death and suicide, Booth said.

“These symptoms don’t go away by themselves and persist over time,” he said. “Unfortunately, less than half of people with depression get treatment, despite the fact that more than 80% of depressed people improve within several months once they get treatment.”

Booth will participate by offering free anonymous depression screenings by appointment at 290 Maple Court, Suite 254, Ventura.

Interested individuals can complete a free depression test, watch an informational video and talk individually with a health professional.

To make an appointment, call 642-6779.