Mental Health Counseling for mood, aging, and coping with life transitions and chronic illness.

Transcription

1 Mental Health Counseling for mood, aging, and coping with life transitions and chronic illness.

2 Silver Linings for Seniors Silver Linings for Seniors, Inc. offers on-site confidential Mental Health Counseling Services and Cognitive Neuropsychological Testing leading to overall well-being and happiness. Senior Counseling for Mindful Living

3 Mental Health Is The fine balance between all aspects of life - social, physical, spiritual and emotional Impacts how surroundings and choices are made An integral part of overall health and well-being

4 An Aging Population Dramatic increases in aging population from 1996 to projected 2025 Age : 70 million 2025: million Age : 30 million 2025: 80 million US Department of Commerce: Economics and Statistics Administration Global Aging into the 21 st Century 2000

5 Good Mental Health? How do we Know? People feel good about themselves. They aren t overwhelmed by emotions, such as fear, anger, love, jealousy, guilt, anxiety or grief. Have lasting and satisfying personal relationships.

6 Good Mental Health means: An individual feels comfortable with other people Can laugh at him/herself and with others Has respect for oneself and for others even if there are differences

7 And People Are Able To Accept life s disappointments Meet life s demands and handle problems when they arise Make decisions on their own Shape a living environment whenever possible, and adjust to it when necessary Ask for guidance when needed

8 Normal Aging People are likely to have the following symptoms. Slower to think Slower to do Hesitate more More likely to look before leaping Know a person but not his/her name Pause to find words Reminded of the past

9 Not Normal Aging Is when a person: Can t think the same Can t do things like before Can t get started Can t seem to move on Doesn t think it out at all Can t place a person Words won t come even later Confused about past versus now Doesn t think and just reacts

10 Maintaining Good Mental Health Requires Attention to lifestyle Social contact Reviewing life from time to time Having people to trust Awareness of what can go wrong Taking steps to resolve problems

11 When Life is Not Going Well - Assessment Have a Therapist listen Assessments are very important may take one or more sessions Chief complaint may be misleading-we dig to help Medication history take time to understand medications Allow a Therapist to get to know the person s history Always share information regarding functional abilities

12 Areas of Assessment Functional assessment Mobility, gait and balance Sensory and language impairments Continence Nutrition Cognitive/behavior problems Depression

13 Parkinson s YOU AREA NOT ALONE! Nearly 50,000 Americans are diagnosed each year. Many times people with Parkinson s are told by their healthcare providers that they have some other disorders or, conversely, people with other disorders are told they have Parkinson s disease because the symptoms are similar. Which can lead to depression and other mental health concerns.

14 Psychosocial Changes Some individual cope with psychosocial changes, and others experience extreme frustration and mental distress

15 Depression Alzheimer s Dementia Adjustment Disorder Anxiety Disorder Grief and Loss

16 Non-Specific Symptoms Confusion Self-neglect Falling Incontinence Apathy Anorexia/weight loss Dyspnea Fatigue Taking to bed

17 An Important but Uncomfortable Conversation Sexual dysfunction Depression Incontinence Musculoskeletal stiffness Alcoholism Hearing loss Memory loss Grief

18 Not Asking For Help Due To Belief that symptoms are due to old age Fear or denial Concern about cost Embarrassment Mental impairment Concern about ill spouse Previous bad experience with health care system Fear of institutionalization

19 Loss Comes in Many Forms: Physical health Social contacts - friends/family die Familiar roles - mother, wife, employed person Financial security - retirement, widowhood Independence and power Mental stability Pets Loss can lead to feeling of depression.

20 Normal Aging vs. Disease Normal aging Crow s feet Hearing Loss Seborrhea Keratosis Loss of skin elasticity Being forgetful Decreased blood vessel compliance Disease Macular degeneration Basal cell CA Dementia Athero-sclerosis Hypertension Obesity

21 Is Someone Depressed? Negative feelings linger, intensify, and often become debilitating A complex illness, creating physical, psychological, and social symptoms Often missed diagnosed Somatic complaints often predominate Many, many drugs should be suspected High suicide rate in elderly males

22 Statistics of Depression Of 35 million seniors in the US An estimated 2 million have a depressive illness 5 million have subsyndromal depression Less than 10% are treated 1 in 10 Americans over 65 will be depressed 19% of all suicides are by patients over 65 Seniors comprise 13% of the population The highest suicide rates in the U.S. are found in white men over age 85 Seniors have 50% higher health care costs if depressed

23 Pay Attention to Appetite/weight change Fatigue Falling/gait/balance Sleep Depression Hearing/visual loss Alcohol use Joint pain, stiffness, ROM Cough Constipation/laxative use or abuse Incontinence Memory loss/confusion Headache Transient weakness or visual symptoms (TIA s)

24 Anxiety Disorders Panic disorders Phobias of intense fear Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Post traumatic Stress Disorder

25 Panic Disorders - Symptoms Chest pain, pressure or discomfort Heart palpitations or rapid heart beat Difficulty breathing or catching your breath A choking sensation or lump in the throat Excessive sweating; light-headedness or dizziness Tingling or numbness in parts of the body Chills or hot flashes; shaking or trembling or feelings of unreality or of being detached from the body

26 We understand it is sometimes hard to adjust to a new location and way of life

27 Cognitive Functioning

28 Cognitive Problems Goals of cognitive screening Detect unsuspected mental impairment Provide baseline for future encounters Discover those at risk for delirium Provide concrete data for competency/decision-making opinions We will suggest you follow up with your Doctor as appropriate Dementia

29 Depression vs. Dementia Depression can look like dementia (pseudodementia) Duration is weeks to months, not months to years Recent and long term memory loss Language pressured History of depression (usually positive) Responds to questions with I don t know Patient s impression of disability: exaggerated

30 Types of Dementia Alzheimer s disease (AD)-- > 60% Vascular (multi-infarct) dementia % Mixed dementia: AD + vascular features All others rare: AIDS, Parkinson s, Down s syndrome Reversible dementias: depression, thyroid disease, vitamin deficiency, infections, normal pressure hydrocephalus

31 Alzheimer's Disease Pathologically deposits of plaques (amyloid) and neurofibrillary tangles (tau protein) Average time between diagnosis and death - 10 years Early - personality changes, irritability, anxiety, depression Late: 50% develop agitation, delusions, hallucinations, or paranoia

32 Types of Dementia Alzheimer s disease (AD)-- > 60% Vascular (multi-infarct) dementia % Mixed dementia: AD + vascular features All others rare: AIDS, Parkinson s, Down s syndrome Reversible dementias: depression, thyroid disease, vitamin deficiency, infections, normal pressure hydrocephalus

33 Alzheimer's Disease Pathologically deposits of plaques (amyloid) and neurofibrillary tangles (tau protein) Average time between diagnosis and death - 10 years Early - personality changes, irritability, anxiety, depression Late: 50% develop agitation, delusions, hallucinations, or paranoia

34 Questions?

35 Please reach out: We re here to help! Basic Address: Website: