Health Department Urges Mental Health Awareness This Holiday Season

[January 02, 2025] 

As the holiday season brings the joy of peace, giving, and love to most, sadly, many people will continue with their year-round struggle combatting mental illness or depression. Adverse life experiences such as physical or emotional neglect, the death of a loved one, the fading family structure, family illness, drug and alcohol abuse are just a few factors that can lead to ongoing trauma, depression, and mental illness.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), from 2019 to 2021, the percentage of adults who received mental health treatment increased from 19.2% to 21.6%. In 2018-2019, 13% of children age 3-17 had a diagnosed mental or behavioral health condition which clearly indicates mental health is a concern.

Identifying signs of negative mental health in a loved one is a significant first step in addressing early intervention to help those in need. Such signs include depression and anxiety. Depression is when one experiences a sad mood or irritability which lasts most of the day, nearly every day for at least two weeks, and interferes with normal everyday functioning. Signs of depression include, but are not limited to, loss of interest in fun activities, sadness, irritability, sleeping disturbance, eating too much or too little, lack of concentration or memory, always feeling tired, guilty, worthless, helpless, or thinking about suicide. Signs of depression may also be physical which could include commonly experiencing aches, pains, headaches, or stomach problems that do not improve with treatment. Anxiety disorders can also go hand in hand with depression. People with anxiety disorder may struggle with intense and uncontrollable anger, fear, worry and/or panic which can interfere with daily living.

If you or a loved one is under emotional stress, experiencing depression or anxiety, having thoughts about injuring oneself or committing suicide, the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline can be reached by dialing 988 to provide counseling, support, and connections to needed resources. Other suggested resources include your local healthcare or behavioral health provider, a spiritual leader in the faith community, or reaching out to a friend. For life threatening situations requiring emergency medical services, you can call 911.

The Logan County Department of Public Health supports behavioral health awareness by urging everyone to recognize the symptoms of poor behavioral health and to reach out for assistance to help those in need. For additional information regarding behavioral health and where to get assistance, you can contact the Logan County Department of Public Health at 217-735-2317.

[Logan County Dept. of Public Health]