Her Health: LIVING WITH DEPRESSION

Jodie Dahl and her husband, Del. SUBMITTED PHOTO

LIVING WITH DEPRESSION

AND FINDING THE RAINBOW

BY SUE SMITH-GRIER | SUBMITTED PHOTOS

Some people look for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Some people know that the storms will blow over and the rainbow will appear. Others endure overcast clouds, storms, invisible storms, dark skies within and they wonder, they hope and pray that there is a rainbow and that someday it will appear. Such was the case for Jodie Dahl and so it is for millions across our nation.

It is easy to believe that in a country of such abundance and affluence, happiness should not be elusive or difficult to attain. The truth is that millions of adult Americans suffer from depression. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, over 16 million adults suffer from at least one major depressive episode annually. That is nearly 7% of the population.

DARK CLOUDS EARLY IN LIFE

Among teenagers, about every hour and a half a teen takes their own life. Since the 1990s, teen suicide has been steadily increasing. No one knows why this is happening. For young people, ages 15 to 24 suicide is the third leading cause of death. Before reaching adulthood about 20 percent of American youths experience depression but only about 30 percent are getting the help they need.

Jodie’s depression began early in her teens. It was during junior high that she began to feel different. Like so many young people, she was bullied in school and suffered from childhood trauma. The depression accelerated when she went to college, and by 1987, she was hospitalized for the first time. At that time Jodie was a music major at Concordia College in Moorehead. Thanks to the pastor at her college, she was taken to the hospital to receive treatment. She was put on medication to help her cope and stayed there about three weeks.

Jodie experienced some trauma at a very young age. Here she is at age 4.

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Although her psychiatrist suggested she drop out of college and go to secretarial school — less pressure, Jodie prevailed, finished college with honors and went on to teach music for 15 years. During this time Jodie managed life well. She pursued advanced education and studied for a master’s degree. It was during this time that she relapsed into depression after the death of her grandfather. She battled courageously, going to work, going through the motions but finally depression won out in 2005 and she made the decision to put a halt to her teaching career and entered the hospital once again for three weeks of treatment. She found herself unable to function.

BATTLING TO FIND THE RAINBOW

Jodie had a long hard battle in and out of hospitals. She was sent to the Intensive Residential Treatment Services facility in Duluth where she stayed for three months and received dialectical behavior therapy, which is a type of cognitive behavioral therapy that tries to identify and change negative thinking patterns and pushes for positive behavioral changes for depression.

Life for Jodie got darker before it got better. She was living in Menahga with her husband and kids at the time and felt she needed to return to Brainerd where she had a good support system with doctors and family.

Jodie Dahl pushes her 2-year-old grandson, Tate, in a swing.

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In 2011, Jodie’s doctor recommended she attend the Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) program. For two years she attended and after graduating from it was doing fairly well. “I think that’s when my recovery really started,” she said. “I got a new therapist and a new psychiatrist and I really started working for the first time on really getting better. In 2013 I made a conscious decision that I needed to get better for my family and for myself. I didn’t want to live in that pit of depression and deep dark days when I couldn’t get out of bed. I couldn’t make meals for my family. I missed a lot of my kids’ school functions because I was in bed sleeping.”

Altogether, from 1989 until 2013, Jodie was hospitalized for depression 35 times. With each episode, she learned more about herself, depression and anxiety. “I did a lot of research and learned a lot about depression and anxiety. I knew a lot about what was going on with me, but I just didn’t know how to fix myself.

Jodie Dahl volunteers her time at The Center in Brainerd helping make doughnuts.

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FINDING THE RAINBOW

Individuals battling depression often find themselves in this space of knowing a lot about the dark clouds that hang over them but knowing how to make them go away is elusive. Jodie found her biggest help in the ACT program. The turning point came when she received intensive help from the ACT team. She saw a therapist once a week and a team member came to her house and checked in on her on a daily basis. She received help for daily living and she received help from an Adult Rehabilitative Mental Health Services worker.

Jodie Dahl enjoys spending time with her grandson, Tate.

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Jodie finds that her best days come with routine. She does better during the regimented time during the school year when schedules are set. Summers are harder. She works to make a schedule of daily exercise, meals and other activities in the hope of maintaining her recovery.

The biggest obstacle for those who suffer from mental health is getting the help they need. Teachers may be uninformed or may assume a student has a drug or alcohol problem without stopping to consider that depression may be the issue. People going through depression often feel alone because it is a subject seldom discussed.

Brainerd has many agencies, doctors and therapists who understand depression and the havoc it creates in the lives of those who suffer from it.

WHERE TO TURN FOR HELP

CROW WING COUNTY SOCIAL SERVICES, 218-824-1140

CRISIS LINE AND REFERRAL SERVICES, 800-462-5525

EMERGENCY ROOM (ST. JOSEPH’S), 218-828-7555

GRACE UNIT, 218-828-7437MN TEEN CHALLENGE, 612-373-3366

NORTHERN PINES MENTAL HEALTH, 218-829-3235

NYSTROM AND ASSOCIATES, 218-829-9307

LSS COUNSELING CENTER, 218-828-7379

LAKELAND PSYCHIATRY, 218-828-7394

NORTHERN PSYCHIATRIC, 218-454-0090

LAKES AREA COUNSELING, 218-828-6274

WARM LINE (JUST NEED TO TALK), 844-739-6369

WWW.MNWITW.ORG, 5 P.M. - 9 A.M. DAILY

SIGNS OF DEPRESSION INCLUDE, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO:

• Sleeping too much

• Isolating from friends and family

• Eating too much

• Not eating or not eating enough

• Constantly going over thoughts

• Apathy

• Loss of interest in activities

• Mood swings

• Sadness

When you experience any of these for more than two weeks, you should seek medical help especially if you have thoughts of harming yourself.

THE RAINBOW APPEARS

Jodie was persistent in seeking the help she needed, and she recommends that others do the same. “Find a coping skill,” she said. “Read, journal, some people like to draw, call a friend. Keep looking for something that works and then every time you feel that depression or anxiety coming, use your coping skills to help you overcome your depression.

Depression is a serious health issue. As one doctor put it, “If you have diabetes or a heart condition, you aren’t ashamed to get it treated, are you? No. It’s a health issue. Your brain is an organ in your body and things can go wrong. It can get off kilter. Just like your heart or lungs, your brain sometimes gets sick.”

Depression is curable. The rainbow exists. Sometimes it just takes a while for it to come out.

Susan J. Smith-Grier, mother, grandmother, writer, storyteller, blogger, and Reading Corps tutor of early elementary kids, enjoys the changing seasons of Minnesota lake country. She lives for those moments when the possibilities light up the eyes of her awesome school kids and delights in the power of words and story.