Chapter 12

Dimensions in Womens Health, Ninth Edition

Linda Lewis Alexander, Judith H. LaRosa, Helaine Bader, Susan Garfield, William Alexander

Chapter 12

Case Study 8 Mental Health

You have had the same roommate since the start of freshman year, so by halfway through your sophomore year, you feel you know Julia pretty well: shes generally quiet but calm, kind, and a really good listener. Julia studies hard but also loves to go dancing and see a local comedy group perform improv sketches. Every morning, Julia takes antidepressant medications. She tells you shes been on them since she was 16.

Three months into your second semester living together, Julia has been acting differently. She doesnt smile as much, seems more nervous, sometimes even grouchy. She stays up reading late into the night, saying she cant sleep, and then oversleeps, sometimes even missing her morning classes. Last Friday you tried ordering her favorite kind of pizza and she only ate one slice. She didnt want to go with you that evening to watch the improv theater group either. In addition, Julia hasnt been bothering to brush her hair-she just pushes it back into a ponytail-and has been wearing the same sweatpants for days. You come back one afternoon from class and find her curled up in bed, crying. When you ask her, Whats wrong? she says, Nothing life everything dont worry about it.

(Julias story has been drawn from the experiences of multiple women coping with depression. Her name and other identifying information have been changed to preserve anonymity.)

Questions

1.Based on the information provided, Julia is showing symptoms of what mental illness?

2.As Julias roommate, what could you say or do (now or in the near future) that might be helpful?

3.What are some things you should avoid doing in order to not make this situation worse?

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