BLUEFIELD, W.Va. -With less sunlight during the colder months, health experts see many struggling with seasonal depression.
According to the nonprofit Mental Health America, five percent of the U.S. population experiences seasonal depression and of that five percent 4 out of 5 are women.
“We’re all human beings, and we all feel things, and we have emotions. Sometimes they can get a little overwhelming, and we all reach out to talk to individuals, whether it be our friends. We’re here when it gets to that point where it gets a little bit unmanageable for an individual, and they have nowhere else to turn,” said John Nekic, Executive Director of the Behavioral Health Pavilion of the Virginias.
Nekic works daily to support and help people dealing with mental health crises in our area.
“One of the main things is actually be a little bit more active. Be very mindful of what your activities are. People do things like journaling and staying connected with individuals, because we’re usually cooped up in the house a little bit more,” continued Nekic.
But while some solutions may sound easy Nekic said it doesn’t always turn out that way.
“Generally, when someone starts feeling a little bit more depressed, they’re going to stay a little bit more isolated and stay inside. So, it takes a little bit more effort. So we need to be a little bit more mindful about the activities that you do to make maybe a plan as to what you’re going to do each day. Especially, you know, talking about journaling to really kind of look at, you can look back at what you journal each day to see how you’re feeling and then compare that up to the activities that you performed and you can maybe see some improvement, but when you’re not seeing that, you know, that’s definitely when you can reach out for help,” said Nekic.
If you are in need of mental health services, the pavilion’s hotline is 304-325-4681 and they do provide both inpatient and outpatient care to best meet your needs.
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