NYFS Online Offering—

Discrete Self-Assessment Available For National Depression Screening Day

Have you been feeling consistently moody or sad? Unable to eat or sleep? Can’t relax or concentrate? Do you worry all time?

If any of this sounds familiar, you may be suffering from depression or a related mental health issue.

To help local residents figure out whether a change in mood is just a case of the blues or a health issue that requires treatment, Newtown Youth & Family Services, Inc is offering a unique, newly enhanced online program.

Anyone can go to the Internet beginning October 2 — at any time, from anywhere — and take an anonymous self-assessment for depression, bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder. These free online screenings will remain available until December 31 — just visit www.MentalHealthScreening.org/screening/NEWTON. (The locally assigned URL misspells the town name.)

“We are thrilled to be offering our community the new online screening as part of this year’s National Depression Screening Day,” said NFS Executive Director Beth Agen. “No one is a stranger to the Internet these days, but many are strangers to their own mental health.”

Ms Agen said the online screening program gives people the chance to learn, in the comfort of their own home, whether they would benefit from seeking help.

“Thanks to the new screening features, we can also provide customized referral information and resources so they will know how to get help,” she added.

Recent help-seeking statistics for online screening participants are encouraging. A study just released by Screening for Mental Health, Inc, followed up with last year’s National Depression Screening Day online participants and found that more than half sought depression treatment in the three months following their initial screening.

“These data provide compelling evidence regarding the ability of web-based screening programs to provide individuals in the community with referral resources that lead them into treatment,” said Robert Aseltine, PhD, professor and director of the Institute for Public Health Research at the University of Connecticut Health Center, who conducted the NDSD study.

As part of the online screening program for Newtown Youth & Family Services, Inc, participants will answer a series of questions about their moods. Questions may include:

*Have you lost pleasure in things you used to enjoy?

*Do you have trouble sleeping or eating?

*Does your mood fluctuate from overly “high” to sad and hopeless?

*Are you keyed up and anxious all the time?

*Do you suffer from unexplained aches and pains?

After completing a self-assessment, participants receive immediate feedback, as well as referral information on how to access local treatment resources, plus links to related articles and resources.

National Depression Screening Day, held in October as part of Mental Illness Awareness Week, is a program of the nonprofit organization Screening for Mental Health, Inc. Last year, nearly 300,000 people were screened nationally at in-person events.