Hannah Adams Woman's Club

The Hannah Adams Woman’s Club focused its February program on Coping during Covid and Beyond.

The guest speaker was Susan Weinstein of Families for Depression Awareness who spoke about being resilient and mentally well during a pandemic (and beyond), balancing everything from feeling alone to overwhelmed, dealing with isolation and chaos, and much more. Susan emphasized the importance of prevention. She said rest, practicing mindfulness, eating quality food and getting outdoors were powerful tools for staying well. Susan noted that depression is four times as prevalent as anxiety and we all must remain conscious of what’s happening with ourselves and others we care about, and to reach out if we are concerned, especially to our friends who might feel isolated.

Symptoms of depression include changes in appetite, energy levels and difficulty concentrating. Extreme symptoms include thinking/talking about death or suicide and in that case, one should seek help immediately for oneself or a loved one.

Important steps to overcoming mild depression include staying connected with others, even if only remotely, practicing self-care, staying hopeful and learning something new. Also refer to the familyaware.org website for education and resources.

Susan provided attendees with a list of resources which HAWC is happy to share with the community. Handouts can be found by following this link http://bit.ly/HannahAdams

Assistance with depression, or any mental health concern, can be directed to your doctor. Seek help from your Employee Assistance program if your place of employment has one, or, if therapy is needed, psychologytoday.com has a provider database.

Next month’s meeting will be on March 2, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. via Zoom. The public is welcome to attend and can register by contacting hannahadamswc@gmail.com. Our guest speaker will be announced shortly at www.hannahadamswc.org.