INDIANAPOLIS -
The Checkup 13 emphasis this month is mental health and overcoming the stigma of asking for help.
"I am starting to climb my way out of it," said Mark Spalding.
Seeing Spalding outside with his dog, Rocky, is one sign that he's beating the depression that kept him isolated.
"It robs you, literally robs you of your life. It robs you of the things you enjoy doing and it robs you from your family," he said.
For Spalding, the crisis compounded. His mother and father died, then he lost his home.
"It was the house my dad built...and I lost it," Spalding said.
Next, he lost his job.
"Nobody likes to fail and I felt like I failed big," he said.
In April, his teenage sweetheart and wife of more than 20 years died suddenly of a heart condition.
"It was never about me or about her, it was always about us," Spalding said.
Without Angie, Mark didn't want to live.
"It was sitting on the edge of the bed last Saturday morning, contemplating a permanent solution and trying to think of a way I could do it without traumatizing my kids," Spalding said. "I couldn't come up with a feasible way."
So instead, Spalding asked for help at the St. Vincent Stress Center.
"I was in this deep, dark hole and it was like somebody just kicked me down a rope ladder and a flashlight," he said.
"The good thing about when you are able to ask for help, you are opening yourself up to all kinds of possibilities. It's possible that, after an evaluation by a mental health professional, you may not need to be in the hospital," said Kimble Richardson, St. Vincent Stress Center. "You may not need intensive programs, you may need medication evaluation, you may need counseling sessions or group sessions, so just knowing that there are those options available all throughout Indianapolis is important."
"A week ago Monday, I had no hope and I'm getting that back. I get that back today," Spalding said.
Spalding is staying the course with support and just wishes he would sought help sooner.
"For me, it was foolish pride that really prevented me from doing anything about it, so there is a certain amount of surrender, but once you surrender, it's there is hope," he said.
Classic symptoms of depression include: Little interest in activities, feeling hopeless, changing sleeping and eating habits, feeling like a failure, having trouble concentrating and feeling it's better without you. If multiple symptoms persist over two weeks, you may want to seek help.
