Most people are vastly under-educated about the effects and scope of depression. Every year, more than 350 million people are thought to be affected by depression. The causes of depression are just as wide-ranging as the types of people it affects. No one, regardless of age, gender, socioeconomic level, or genetic history, is invulnerable when it comes to depression. One demographic that is particularly susceptible to depression is the terminally ill.

Dealing with grief is a ubiquitous experience during the final stages of life. However, this grief can easily turn into clinical depression if left unchecked. Thankfully, depression is a treatable condition, even in terminally ill patients.

The first step to treating depression in terminally ill patients is recognizing the symptoms. These symptoms are very similar to symptoms found in non-terminally ill patients. If you think your loved one is experiencing or may be on the verge of experiencing depression, look for changes in their mood, sleeping, appetite, weight, behavior, and cognition.

It’s important to remember that these changes can be caused by a myriad of other factors, so be sure to check with the attending physician before sounding the alarms.

Once depression has been identified as the root cause of these changes, there are several treatment options available. Medication and counseling are the two primary treatment options for depression. The hospice chaplain and bereavement consoler will be a fantastic resource for any hospice patients experiencing depression.

These counseling services are also available to the family of the patient, because depression doesn’t just affect the patient. Seeing your loved one go through the last stages of life and coping with their impending death can take a real toll on family members. This is why family members also need to vigilant to be spot depression.