Sometimes I come across people who barely seem to be there. The lights are “on” so to speak, but there is no one inside at home. These are many times people who have lost any enthusiasm for life many times through a set of debilitating and/or discouraging circumstances. Generally, it seems these folks walk through their lives in fear just knowing that something “bad” is about to happen and many times, they are not disappointed. They are generally without hope that anything can ever change or get better. This is a sad and oftentimes lonely place to find oneself. Indeed, some end up taking their own life because their situation becomes so personally painful. This way out seems to become the only alternative that makes any sense to these who are tormented and we lose many people, yes, even friends and family each year to suicide.

Generally speaking, approximately 31,000 people each year (1995) take their own lives. Statistics indicate that approximately 80% of all suicides are males and it is the third leading cause of death in the 15-24 age group representing approximately 20% of all suicide deaths or 6,000 young people each year. Of these 30,000 people, the majority of these have not sought out mental health treatment and 60% of those who attempt suicide are successful on the first attempt.

The truth be told, there are most likely many more suicides occurring than are actually diagnosed and reported. Realistically, there is an aura of shame in families where someone has decided to take their own life and it is either concealed or not widely publicized. It has been verified by research that suicide does indeed run in families, not in the genetic sense, but rather that it appears that one person endorsing this way of dealing with their problems becomes a strange sort of permission to do likewise for other troubled members of the family.

It becomes essential for all of us to understand that Major Depression is not just some cute name for someone who is attempting to avoid the problems in their life. This is a very real and debilitating illness that is as genuine and dangerous as cancer or any other life-threatening disease. We somehow have placed depression on a lower tier because it cannot be seen under a microscope or diagnosed by a biologically-based objective outcome measure such as a blood test. Approximately 1 in 5 Americans can expect to experience some form of depression and approximately 1 in 10 will experience chronic emotional depression during their lifetime. The older the US population becomes, the more vulnerable we become to major depression.

For more information and to understand the symptoms of Major Depression, please visit: