In the Race

A friend of mine is a school psychologist, and she passed this on to me, and I would like to pass to on to you:

National Depression Screening Day is today, Friday, October 10th.  As part of Mental Health Awareness Week, Wisconsin School Psychology Association (WSPA) is proud to join with Lt. Governor Lawton and Mental Health America of Wisconsin to promote a free, anonymous online depression screening on National Depression Screening Day.  

 Depression is a common, real, and treatable illness. Nearly one million individuals in Wisconsin struggle with depression - about one in six.

Unfortunately, thousands of these individuals battle depression alone and remain untreated. Indeed, untreated depression has far-reaching implications for all of us.  Medical costs of those afflicted by depression average twice those who are non-depressed, and those suffering from depression (an estimated 16% of all Americans) are seven times more likely to be unemployed or underemployed.  A recent National Institute of Health study found that depression costs the U.S. tens of billions of dollars annually, primarily from increased health care costs and from lost work productivity.  

Together we can change those statistics. The good news: with early screening, depression is easily diagnosed and treated, minimizing its devastating effects.