National Depression Screening Day was Friday. Although screenings were not held locally, awareness of the disorder should be brought to the forefront, say mental health providers.

According to Gary Lester, executive director of Family Services of Warren County, people often use the term depression as a colloquialism.

"People use that word very loosely," he said, referring to having a bad day or just feeling down.

"Even if they have a general stressor people use the word depression," he said.

However, a diagnosis of depression requires meeting certain criteria.

According to the World Health Organization, depression is common and affects about 121 million people worldwide.

Lester said, "It's takes a trained person to diagnosed."

The Beck Depression Inventory is often used to diagnose depression and measure the severity.

Lester said the Beck survey consists of 21 questions and requires a person to assign a ranking on a scale of 0 to 3 for different symptoms and emotions. For example, in the category of sadness, when someone gives a ranking of 0, they are saying they do not feel sad.

On the other hand, a ranking of three denotes a feeling of "I'm so sad, I cannot stand it," he said.

The Beck Inventory also has questions regarding irritability, suicidal thought and crying.

Lester indicated that depression has "an impact on a person's ability to function."

"The jury is still out on what causes (depression)," Lester admitted.

There are several possible causes such as brain function, chemical imbalances, hereditary and psycho-social influences.

As far as treatment goes, medication and counseling are sometimes used or maybe a combination of both. Medications address problems with neurotransmitters.

"My personal question is a chicken and the egg situation," he said, because he is not certain if medication is taking care of the symptoms or the cause of depression.

Lester said a person may be able to somewhat self-diagnose depression.

"If people say to you are you ok?" he said, that may be a sign of depression.

If someone feels as though they are suffering from depression, Lester said, "I think the easiest thing is to contact a counselor."

By contacting a counselor, a person can get a diagnosis and discuss treatment options. The person may find the underlying issues which may be causing the adverse feelings such as grief or substance abuse.

"(Depression) is very treatable," Lester added.