I Didn’t Expect My Doctor to Screen Me for Depression

Not many people are like me. I actually look forward to going to the doctor's office every year for my physical. I guess it's me just being curious about how healthy I really am. I also get surprised when the doctor tells me, "Jackson, you have a clean bill of health but make sure you keep exercising and eating healthy."

It's like going to get your oil changed and having the dealership tell you there is nothing wrong with your car.

I'm very blessed to have, for the last few years, the doctor give me a clean bill of health.

As you may know, I recently moved back up to the SouthCoast. I had been seeing a doctor down in Virginia for the past decade. Since moving back, I had to find a doctor up here. Luckily, I found one at Southcoast Health on Faunce Corner in Dartmouth.

I was ready to hear some not-so-good news since I hadn't really been taking great of care of myself over the last few months.

Thankfully, all is good (bloodwork pending) but there was a part of my visit that had never happened to me before.

The doctor did what was loosely called a "depression screening." It was a handful of questions that are ranked and then you get a score. If you score above a certain number, the doctor treats you accordingly.

Anyone else get this type of screening from their doctor? I'm so thankful that they do this but I'm wondering how they come up with the questions. There are so many gray areas when it comes to someone being depressed that you couldn't possibly cover them in a six-question survey. It is the season that many struggle with depression, so I'm beyond thankful they perform this kind of test and hope that this helps those that struggle with suicidal thoughts.

By the way, there is a new number for anyone who thinks they may need help: 988.

Thank you to Southcoast Health for what I really thought was a thorough visit. It definitely felt like someone was looking out for not only my physical health but my mental health as well.