An online tool to prevent depression
We often feel sad, lacking energy or motivation. We might have trouble sleeping or concentrating, or experience work-related problems. Perhaps, at some point, we've even wondered if we might be experiencing depression, but we're not sure.
Many people may experience emotional distress without necessarily having depression, as a diagnosis of depression requires a set of symptoms that are not always present. However, it does seem clear that people experiencing this distress may be at higher risk of developing depression. If so, is it possible to prevent depression in people who are already experiencing some distress? Can depression be predicted and prevented? The answer is yes.
Dr. Juan Ángel Bellón Saameño
The SAMSERAP research group (Mental Health, Services and Primary Care), belonging to the Research Network on Preventive Activities and Health Promotion (redIAPP) and the Biomedical Research Institute of Malaga (IBIMA), has been working for almost two decades on the definition and validation of the individual risk of depression , based on the risk factors for depression.
As a result of their studies, Predict plus Prevent was born, a set of calculators based on a risk algorithm to predict the appearance of future episodes of depression, available in Spanish and English, and already being used by more than 300,000 people worldwide.
Currently, it is possible to determine an individual's risk of depression and, through this online platform, even to participate in personalized activities designed to improve emotional well-being and prevent the onset of this mental health disorder. The proposed activities focus on aspects such as assertiveness, sleep hygiene, social relationships, and physical activity, among others.
Do you want to participate in a project to prevent depression?
Within the framework of this international strategy for the prevention of depression, this same research group is carrying out the e-Predict-work project, a multiplatform application that offers tools to reduce stress and to help people feel better on a daily basis.
This project invites everyone to participate. To do so, simply access the platform and provide the requested information anonymously and confidentially. If the system detects that a person is at risk of depression, it provides a series of easy-to-follow, personalized activities tailored to their individual profile, which they can monitor from their smartphone.
Given that depression is the most common mental health disorder in the world, affecting more than 300 million people according to the World Health Organization (WHO), finding the key to prediction and prevention is truly relevant.
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