Double-Whammy! Depression & Dementia By LORI L. DIEROLF It may not surprise you to hear that according to the National Institute of Mental Health, nearly 7% of American adults — an estimated 17 million people — will have at least one major depressive episode in their lifetimes. But did you know that 20% of people over the age of 65 have been impacted by depression? And, the age group with the largest number of suicides in the U.S. is men over the age of 75? In fact, 20% of all suicides in this country are committed by people over the age of 65, yet only 1 person out of 10 gets help for their depression, despite the fact that more than 70% of these individuals had seen their doctor within one month of their deaths.
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BUSINESSWoman caregiver solutions 2020
Depression is toxic to the brain, and it is three times more common in older adults living with dementia than those without dementia. Neither depression nor dementia is a normal part of aging, yet about half of all individuals affected by Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia will experience significant symptoms of depression at some point in their illness. When an individual has dementia, it can be extremely difficult for care partners to recognize the symptoms of depression in that person. This is partly due to the fact that the behaviors common in depression can be viewed as “normal” for a person with dementia. Individuals living with dementia are also less able to describe
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