Economic Problems Lead to a Rise in Depression

09/04/2011 by JohnBuck.

Prescriptions for anti-depressants have risen by more than forty per cent over the past four years. Doctors and various charities have said that this figure is mostly people who are struggling with general debt and also fears of redundancy. Financial problems can sometimes act as a “trigger”, but there are other things to take into consideration such as the fact that being depressed is now more acceptable. The worrying thing is that this particular rise has happened during a time when alternative therapies have been available such as talking therapies, which should have curbed the demand for anti-depressant drugs. Department of Health figures have shown that this year referrals for talking therapies have risen to nearly 600,000.

During times of economic hardships mental health problems seem to get worse and GPs are seeing more and more people coming in to their surgeries with major debt problems or they have employment worries. People often feel guilty that they cannot provide for their loved ones and this can often lead to depression. The rich seem to get richer and the poor just seem too get depressed.

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