By Emmanuel T. Erediano
Variety News Staff

SOCIAL workers at the Community Guidance Center’s Transitional Living Center say more people experiencing depression are seeking help.
Although the center has yet to come up with an exact figure, social workers Angel Nimwes and Berni S. Pangelinan said they have noticed that there has been “quite an increase in cases of depression in the early part of this fiscal year compared to the same period last year.”
They said that from January to December 2006, 356 individuals came in for treatment sessions.
Although only four of these people continue to attend the sessions, Pangelinan said she was told that “there’s still a lot of people to be seen.”
Nimwes said depression, if not treated, “can disrupt an individual’s daily functioning and may develop into a major depressive disorder.”
The Community Guidance Center has six counselors, one clinical psychologist who interviews clients, and one psychiatrist who can prescribe medications.
Most cases of depression the social workers have encountered were related to loss of jobs, relationships going awry, alcohol and drug abuse and gambling addiction.
Depression, although not necessarily a mental illness, threatens one’s mental health, the social workers said. It is normal for people to experience depression but but treatment should still be sought.