PEOPLE in Inishowen who
are suffering from depression have been urged not to
struggle alone with what is a very treatable
condition.
Aware made the call yesterday at the launch of its
Depression Awareness Week (DAWN) which this year
coincides with Aware's 25th anniversary.
Aware's North West regional executive officer, Ruth
Cleary, said the DAWN campaign took place every
January, a month when many people were feeling
particularly low after Christmas.
“Depression is something that visits every family in
this country, but we know that many people never
come forward for help and struggle alone with what
is a treatable condition. At the start of a new
decade and after 25 years of work, Aware is saying
to everyone, young and old, 'you can recover from
depression'," said Ms Cleary.
Aware was founded in Dublin in 1985 and statistics
show that more than 400,000 people in Ireland
experience depression at any one time. Depression
will affect one-in-three of us at some point in our
lives.
DAWN aims to highlight the issue of depression,
reduce stigma and create greater public awareness
about the support, information and education
services offered by the organisation. The campaign
is supported by Irish personalities including Leo
Cullen, Ray D’Arcy, Eddie Hobbs, Rosanna Davison,
Pamela Flood, Aidan Power and Holly White.
Ms Cleary said there were twice-monthly Aware
meetings in Buncrana as well a monthly meeting in
Letterkenny for families of people with depression.
"Don’t deal with this on your own. There are options
available to you through aware.ie or our LoCall
helpline and you can recover from depression," she
added.
If you would like a free Aware information pack,
call Ruth Cleary in Mountcharles, Co Donegal, on
07497 35030 or email her on
ruth.cleary@aware.ie
.
Aware’s LoCall helpline is 1890 303 302 and is open
365 days a year. The Aware support group meets at
the Buncrana Nursing Unit, Maginn Avenue, on the
second and fourth Monday of every month at 7.30pm.
An Aware family support meeting takes place on the
first Monday of every month at 4A Pearse Road,
Letterkenny, at 8pm.
Meanwhile, Aware also offers a number of depression
awareness and education services including Beat the
Blues, to senior cycle students in secondary
schools. |
