Students gathered in ULM’s Student Center Thursday night to attend a workshop focusing on identifying and combatting depression.
Counselors Kim Storm and Brittina Johnson hosted the event and answered students’ questions about depression. According to Storm, the ULM Counseling Center tries to host depression and anxiety workshops every semester.
Storm said she hopes that the workshop will increase depression awareness and make students more willing to come to the counseling center with their problems.
“As counselors, we’re not really there to make someone do something. There has to be a level of self-motivation,” Storm said.
According to the workshop, suicide is the third leading cause of death in college students. Students with depression are five times more likely to commit suicide.
The workshop discussed five types of depression: major depression, persistent depressive disorder, psychotic depression, seasonal affective disorder and postpartum depression. Persistent depressive disorder is the one most commonly seen in students.
Depression can be hard to identify. It often appears as irritability instead of sadness.
Depression can contribute to other conditions such as eating disorders, substance abuse and generalized anxiety disorder.
The workshop encouraged students to talk about their stressors or the cause of their depression. Identifying negative thoughts and reframing them in a positive way can help you overcome depression.
Students who attended see depression as a serious concern for college students. Jessica Flanagan, a sophomore communications major, said she attended the workshop so she would be more able to help someone struggling with depression.
“A lot of people feel more alone than they should,” Flanagan said.
Flanagan also said she worried that many students are unwilling to acknowledge their depression.
According to the workshop, many students claim a lack of time as a reason they do not try to address their depression.
Other students view it as a temporary state that will pass when the source of their stress has passed. Some students fail to recognize depression, because they don’t have symptoms of sadness or lethargy.
Once a person acknowledges their depression, there are several steps they can take to improve their mood. Daily exercise and a healthy diet can help treat depression. Spending time outdoors can also help both the physical and emotional symptoms.
The process of recovery can be very slow. The workshop warned students to be patient and not expect to “snap out of” depression. Your mood may slowly improve over time.
The workshop also suggested some techniques for treating depression. Meditation and listing some positive things in your life can both help change the way you think.
The ULM Counseling Center offers free counseling for any ULM student. The center can customize therapy to address each student’s specific needs.