{"id":659,"date":"2020-05-04T16:17:48","date_gmt":"2020-05-04T16:17:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/?page_id=659"},"modified":"2020-05-04T16:17:48","modified_gmt":"2020-05-04T16:17:48","slug":"supporting-someone-with-depression","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/supporting-someone-with-depression\/","title":{"rendered":"Supporting Someone with Depression"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.unsplash.com\/photo-1579208570378-8c970854bc23?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&amp;ixid=eyJhcHBfaWQiOjEyMDd9&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=1000&amp;q=80\" alt=\"two person holding papercut heart\" width=\"443\" height=\"279\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nDuring this difficult\ntime, we may find ourselves spending A LOT of time with people we live with and\nnot enough time with people we do not. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a spike\nin anxiety and depression. You may be living with someone with depression or you\nknow someone who might be struggling with depression somewhere else in the\nworld. In times like these, we should all help support one another so this post\nis here to give you some ideas about what to do to support someone you think\nmight be suffering from depression. \n\n\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Depression is an illness:<\/strong> There is no way to \u201cget over\u201d depression and you can\u2019t just \u201csnap out of it\u201d. Depression is often a chronic, lifelong illness that effects millions. While we can\u2019t force someone to get help, we can provide support by:<ol><li>Checking in regularly: send a text, a funny email, or picture; call, FaceTime, or Zoom them. <\/li><li>Invite them to talk if they ever need it.<\/li><li>Emphasize that you are there for them if they need anything.<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Just\nlisten:<\/strong> Silence is\ngolden, and this is essential when someone is confiding in you about their\nfeelings and difficulties. Not all problems are fixable, and you don\u2019t have to\nfix them! Just respecting and acknowledging that their experiences are real to\nthem is enough.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.unsplash.com\/photo-1531211373157-f54cd9ece990?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&amp;ixid=eyJhcHBfaWQiOjEyMDd9&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=1000&amp;q=80\" alt=\"man doing keep quiet sign\" width=\"346\" height=\"230\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Be\nsupportive of healthy habits:<\/strong>\nSome healthy habits include exercise, healthy eating, healthy sleeping, and socializing.\nGive encouragement and offer to join them in their activities. Make sure you\nare doing these for yourself too!<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Encourage\nthem to seek help:<\/strong>\nThere are several mental health practices that are doing telephone or video\nsessions. Seeking help can be a source of stigma for many so the fact that you are\noffering your encouragement could help them along!<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Connect\nthem with social support:<\/strong>\nDo you know someone who is also going through the same thing that they might be\nable to connect with? Perhaps there is a chat room or an organization that\noffers support. <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.unsplash.com\/photo-1469571486292-0ba58a3f068b?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&amp;ixid=eyJhcHBfaWQiOjEyMDd9&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=1000&amp;q=80\" alt=\"hands formed together with red heart paint\" width=\"528\" height=\"352\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Take\nmentions of suicide seriously:<\/strong>\nThoughts about suicide is a common symptom of depression. If you feel that\nsomeone is in immediate danger call 911, take them to the ER, or encourage them\nto contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255\n(1-888-628-9454 for Spanish speakers) where support is free, confidential, and available\n24\/7. They also help support people who have loved ones who are depressed or\nsuicidal, don\u2019t forget to make sure you are supported as well! View their\nwebsite at:<br>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/suicidepreventionlifeline.org\/\">https:\/\/suicidepreventionlifeline.org\/<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Make\ntime for self-care:<\/strong>\nWhen times get hard, self-care is often the first thing to go. Take a break,\neat your favorite food, watch your favorite show, get good sleep, take a\nshower, take time to relax, you deserve it. Encourage your loved one to do that\nsame! Take a look at our \u201cFree Things to Do\u201d or our \u201cFood and Recipes\u201d page for\nsome extra inspiration!<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.unsplash.com\/photo-1505489304219-85ce17010209?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&amp;ixid=eyJhcHBfaWQiOjEyMDd9&amp;auto=format&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=1000&amp;q=80\" alt=\"woman holding a cup of coffee at right hand and reading book on her lap while holding it open with her left hand in a well-lit room\" width=\"567\" height=\"378\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>It\nis not your responsibility to cure your loved one:<\/strong> It would be nice if we could wave\na magic wand and make their problems go away but that is not possible. Remember\nthat it is not fair to yourself to take responsibility for someone\u2019s depression\nor recovery!<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Taken from\nTherapistsaid.com, printable PDF located at: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.therapistaid.com\/worksheets\/supporting-someone-with-depression.pdf\">https:\/\/www.therapistaid.com\/worksheets\/supporting-someone-with-depression.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>During this difficult time, we may find ourselves spending A LOT of time with people we live with and not enough time with people we do not. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a spike in anxiety and depression. You may be living with someone with depression or you know someone who might be struggling with &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/supporting-someone-with-depression\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Supporting Someone with Depression&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4407,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-659","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/659","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4407"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=659"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/659\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":675,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/659\/revisions\/675"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/communitycares\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=659"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}