Depression and Anxiety in Later Life ─ What Everyone Needs to Know

Physical problems and emotional stresses, such as bereavement, health conditions, pain, concerns about the future, side effects of medications, and the accumulated effects of lifestyle choices, may lead to depression or anxiety in older people. However, as Drs. Mark D. Miller and Charles F. Reynolds III know, these mental disorders are not a natural or an inevitable part of aging. In Depression and Anxiety in Later Life, these psychiatrists show how depression and anxiety can be avoided or minimized by adapting to changing circumstances while controlling risk factors and getting help when it's needed.

This reassuring book balances discussions of the causes, symptoms, and treatments of mental illness with descriptions of successful adaptive aging. Case studies illustrate the less obvious depression symptoms of irritability, disorganization, and social withdrawal. Readers will find information about memory loss, pain, sleep, nutrition, and end-of-life issues particularly helpful.

Aging can be challenging, but it doesn’t always lead to depression or anxiety. Depression and Anxiety in Later Life will help older people, their family members, and caregivers make positive changes to take control of their own individual situations.

Mark D. Miller, M.D., is associate professor of psychiatry at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Charles F. Reynolds III, M.D., is professor at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic and senior associate dean at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. He is associate editor of the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. They are the authors of Living Longer Depression Free: A Family Guide to Recognizing, Treating, and Preventing Depression in Later Life, also published by Johns Hopkins.