Your Mental Health Matters—Get a Depression Screening
Posted on March 26, 2024
Although depression is common among older adults, it isn’t necessarily a normal part of aging. Depression is a serious illness and not something to deal with on your own. Treatment is available, which can help improve your quality of life. Recognizing if you or a loved one have depression and seeking help from a medical professional is very important.
If you have mental health concerns, a great place to start is with your primary care provider (PCP). They can offer an initial depression screening and refer you to a mental health specialist.
Should I Get Screened?
You should get screened for depression if you experience some or all of the following symptoms:
- Loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed
- Feeling down, depressed or hopeless
- Sleeping too little, too much or waking very early
- Reduced appetite and weight loss, or increased appetite and weight gain
- Fatigue or loss of energy
- Difficulty concentrating, remembering things or making decisions
Reminder: As a Health New England member, you have Behavioral Health coverage, which includes mental health and substance use disorder. For help finding an outpatient mental health provider, please call our Member Services team toll-free at (877) 443-3314 (TTY: 711) or search our Provider Directory at healthnewengland.org/medicare.
Sources: Mental Health America; National Institute of Mental Health
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