Depression in the workplace
STEPHEN HEIDEL
San Diego Daily Transcript , Wednesday, December 26, 2001
Sitting at a desk with uncontrollable crying spells. Waking up at 3 a.m. and not being able to fall back to sleep. Not being able to concentrate on or complete an important project. Anger at co-workers. Incredible fatigue. Thoughts of suicide. These are some of the thoughts, feelings and behaviors employees face when they are suffering from depression.
Depression is not the same as having a bad day or feeling the blues. It is much more serious. A person with depression feels extreme anguish and suffers more than many people with physical illnesses. The symptoms of depression include a depressed mood, loss of interest in activities that were pleasurable (including sex), significant weight change, change in sleeping habits, agitation, fatigue, feeling worthless, inability to concentrate or make decisions and suicidal thoughts. When a person has had several of these symptoms for more than two weeks, they may suffer from depression.
Sue Babbit is a 32-year-old woman who had an excellent career as a paralegal in a law firm. For two months, following Sept. 11, she was depressed and irritable. She slept poorly, lost eight pounds and was not able to concentrate on anything at work. She had no idea why this was happening because she liked her family and her job. Her manager talked to her one day after she had been crying at work. She asked Sue if something was wrong and then listened for 15 minutes while Sue told her how bad she felt.
Since Sept. 11 her world had changed and she did not know why. She felt guilty about not pulling her weight at work and letting so many people down. She was totally distracted when working on her files and constantly worried about her two-year-old daughter, fearing she would die, despite the fact that she was healthy and well adjusted. She knew this was irrational but could not get the thoughts out of her mind. Sue was suffering from clinical depression, an illness that is both common and treatable. In any given year it affects about eight percent of the adult population (20 million people) in the United States. Women are twice as likely to suffer from depression as men. Depression causes more disability than any illness except for heart disease. People with chronic medical illnesses, such as diabetes, arthritis, heart disease and cancer are very likely to suffer from depression as well. Often it is their untreated depression, more than a physical illness, causing them to lose so much function.
The cost of depression in the United States was an estimated $44 billion dollars in 1990. More than half of this cost was due to absenteeism and lost productivity -- thus it is a great burden for employers. Depressed employees are irritable, have difficulty making decisions, have low morale, cannot contribute in a team setting, alienate and disappoint valued customers, are accident prone, have frequent tardiness and absenteeism and may abuse alcohol or drugs. If offered appropriate treatment, over 80 percent of depressed employees would respond to therapy and/or medications, but most people never receive the help they need. There are several reasons for this. Many people know they do not feel well, but do not realize they are suffering from depression and that professional help is necessary. Stigma prevents others from asking for help. Employees often feel depression is a sign of personal weakness and are afraid to tell someone at work for fear it would endanger their job. Employees who are depressed often seek help from their family physician. When talking to their doctor, they may complain about a physical symptom, such as indigestion, headaches, or insomnia, rather than talk about feeling depressed. Their doctor is apt to treat the symptom they are complaining about rather than treat them for depression. They might be prescribed an antacid, pain medicine or sleeping pill when they really need an antidepressant.
Since depression is so common and so costly to employers, many have developed a strategy to manage this illness. Common steps include:
- Invite a mental health professional to talk to employees about depression, how to recognize it and how to seek treatment. They may supply brochures with basic information about depression.
- Provide an employee assistance program as a benefit for all employees and as a management resource to help managers when they are encouraging employees with personal problems to seek help for their problems.
- Select a health plan that provides good mental health benefits with easy access to a panel of mental health professionals.
These simple steps educate employees about depression, reduce stigma and make treatment for depression as affordable as any other illness. Corporations have found that it is good for business when their employees receive treatment for depression. Sue Babbit's story has a good outcome. At the encouragement of her manager, Sue made an appointment with her employee assistance program (EAP).
After meeting with an EAP counselor she learned that she had a clinical depression. She told the counselor that other people in her family (mother and brother) also had episodes of depression and learned from the counselor that depression often has a genetic link. She was told depression may be triggered by a traumatic event or may have no apparent cause.
Sue was referred to a psychiatrist who prescribed an antidepressant medication and met with her for several sessions to talk about her feelings of despair. Within four weeks, she was feeling much better. She was able to take better care of her daughter and was able to focus on her work as she always had in the past.