Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy

There are severe short comings in restricting depression treatment to anti depressants and psychological counselling. Whilst these approaches are appropriate for some people, to assume these are the only strategies that someone should follow is extremely problematic.

One of the big issues is that the term “depression” covers a myriad of conditions. For example, reactive depression comes after a person goes through an adverse experience, whereas melancholic depression seems to come from nowhere and appears to be biological in nature.  Thought leading psychiatrists will often treat these two types of depression in a different way. Because depression is a complex illness with often many contributing factors, it is best to consider not just those things that improve one’s mood from suicidal to struggling, but also to consider the things that are capable of leading to a more fulfilling life after recovery.

In research done for my first book, and separately by the Black Dog Institute (one of the world’s foremost mood disorder research units) sufferers were asked which depression treatments work best. From this direct dialogue, a much more holistic picture emergences regarding the most effective strategies. From this research and from interviewing thousands of people who suffer from depression and their loved ones, we have formed a list of 7 essential depression treatments which are in order: exercise, support of family and friends, psychological counselling, fulfilling work, meditation/relaxation, nutrition, and medication.

Both research studies showed that exercise is the most effective depression treatment and there are only positive side effects not just for mental health but also physical health. Exercise is free which is probably why relatively little research funding has been directed towards evaluating it’s effectiveness for treating depression (compared to medication). Dr Andrea Dunn from the US has studied the amount of exercise necessary to have an impact on depression, and found that the equivalent of 30 minutes brisk walk 6 days a week is as effective as or better than all medications.

Those with depression will tell you how important the support of loved ones are for overcoming depression which is ironical as it is the family and friends who often report that they feel pushed away during this trying period. When interviewing both parties who had been living with the problem for a while, they recommended the following approach: learn about the different types of depression and most effective treatment strategies, improve communication, find the right mental health help for the depression sufferer, help build a support network for them, and find help and support for the caregiver.

The psychological depression treatments shown to be most effective are Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Interpersonal Therapy (IT), and Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT). CBT shows the client how to challenge unhelpful thinking through writing down some of these negative thoughts and then disputing them. IT shows people how to be more assertive in their relationships as it has been shown that those with depression are often quite passive in establishing their wants and needs. MBCT combines the mindfulness meditation techniques with the principles of CBT.

It has been well documented how important fulfilling work (whether paid or voluntary) is to one’s mental health. It was quite surprising however, that those with depression rated it above medication for example. I know from interviewing over 6000 people during my 12 years working in recruitment that a huge percentage of people (some studies show up to 60 percent) aren’t engaged in their work and don’t really enjoy it. Retrenchments and the longer hours brought on to those remaining in the workplace, only exacerbate the problem. The key is to identify work which allows you to utilise skills that you enjoy using and are also good at.

The ability to sit with yourself without interruption is one of the losses in today’s 24/7 life. Being able to experience peace is an essential skill in this world of constant stimulation and distraction. For some people that may be meditation, for others it might be listening to music, playing with a pet, gardening, sewing or pursuing other hobbies. Many people report this is a very difficult thing to do when you are very busy, but with practice it rewards those that persist. It is also important to have enough sleep each night to feel replenished. Whilst many people with depression find this particularly difficult, there are proven methods to make our sleep more restful.

Whilst much has been made of the necessity of eating well for good physical health it is interesting to see how highly the right nutrition rates for mental health. There are many websites and books on this topic but they basically come down to eating a diet high in fresh fruits and vegetables with some lean protein. Drinking plenty of water, eating fish (or taking Omega 3 supplements) and getting vitamin D through exposure to sunlight have also been shown to be very helpful. Only moderate levels of alcohol should be consumed.

Whilst for some people medication can be a godsend for improving their mood, for others it can be an extremely frustrating path which seems to be explored by trial and error. What makes it very difficult, is that whilst one drug can work wonders for one person, the same drug can be ineffective and cause distressing side effects in another. The most important factor here is to be assessed by a highly competent psychiatrist and receive an accurate diagnosis. Often the correct diagnosis is the key to prescribing the right drug/s.

The lifestyle strategies recommended above should be the first line of attack.  If your depression symptoms have not improved significantly after 2 weeks you should discuss medication with your doctor. It is strange that people have no hesitation taking pharmaceutical products for diabetes and high cholesterol for example, yet feel it is a personal weakness to take anti depressants. It is equally foolish to expect a drug to be a silver bullet without considering the lifestyle depression treatments highlighted above.

This brief overview of the 7 essential strategies for overcoming depression as quickly as possible is just meant to be an introduction. We recommend that they are all pursued not just to overcome depression but also to prevent relapse. If these approaches are regularly followed you just may emerge from your depression with a more fulfilling life than before.

When a person starts to feel depressed, the brain is releasing a mixture of chemicals into the bloodstream and changing the way the brain functions. It is also caused by other external factors, for example a particular situation, what another person had said, and more.

A person can feel slightly depressed or can feel extremely depressed depending how seriously they are affected by depression. The mechanics of how depression works is quite simple. The human brain is made up of billions of never endings called neurons and it carries signals from your brain to your body using a chemical called neurotransmitters.

The chemicals in our brain are also responsible for influencing our emotional state and depression is caused when the neurotransmitters send weak signals causing the body to change its state.

Treating Depression

There are two common treatments for depression, psychotherapy and medication.

Psychotherapy
Otherwise known as “talk therapy,” is said to be the most effective way of treatment. Countless studies have proven that when a person is talking to someone about their condition it can slowly rid depression. However results will take time it’s a rather safe form of treatment and expression how a person feels. You can expect to psychotherapy to go between 10 and 20 weeks.

Different Types of Psychotherapy

• Group therapy is having other people with depression or similar issues sit down and contribute to each other their experiences and how they over came their issues. Along with a qualified therapist, group therapy is a form of treatment that provides results.

• Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is the understanding of depression and how our brain reacts to it. Our thinking process and behaviour patters that are negative can be treated with a therapist who will help teach you how to react and think when you feel depressed.

• Interpersonal therapy is focused at linking depression with a person’s emotional problem.

• Psychodynamic therapy is linked to personal traumas and experiences in a person’s life that causes depression especially during childhood.

Medication
The majority of patience that seek medication for depression often are successful depending on how deeply the person is affected by depression it may take longer to find a cure. Most medications are called antidepressants and the two most popular antidepressant medications are, PAXIL CR and WELLBUTRIN.

Only a doctor should prescribe these medications to you and it might take some time to see some results. You’ll notice in about four weeks that your moods will change. Your doctor should recommend the period that you should stay on your medication.

There are various situations in life where an individual may have to go through the procedure of depression. Although the cause of depression varies from person to person, the main reason may be due to some personal problems which may be work related, relationship problems or due to family problems but personal and family problems mainly contribute to the build up of depression.

What does Depression cause?

For many, depression does not seem complex because they live with it. But depression causes problems in work, social life, family adjustment. If you suffer from depression then you must be well aware of the problems that you face, but it is not only you that suffer, but people around you suffer too because they care for you.

Types of Depression:

You may wonder how can there be different types of depression. The truth is that there are 5 types of depressions and the following section explains it further.

Ø Major Depression: This is the most serious type and the variety and number of symptoms are huge.

Ø Dysthymic Disorder: A depression that is generally moderate and has been present for nearly two years or at times longer.

Ø Unspecified Depression: This type exists in people who have depression that is quite serious in nature but not severe in nature.

Ø Adjustment Disorder Depression: A type of depression that occurs with people due to problems or due to a crisis in one’s life.

Ø Bipolar Depression: People facing this type of depression may have low and high mood swings along with other symptoms.

If you suffer from depression, depression therapy will help you to combat it. You can do depression therapy on your own and the first thing you need to do is stop thinking negative. Negative thinking is the main reason for depression and it pulls any person back from achieving what they want to do. The following steps given below are useful when considering a good depression treatment :

1) In the initial stages set goals that are not tough for you by breaking them down to smaller ones and then accordingly proceed to fulfilling the goals.

2) Avoid staying alone and instead always try to have friends or relatives around so that you can enjoy every moment. By enjoying yourself you keep all problems away.

3) Avoid negative thinking whenever it comes to your mind, instead think the positive version of it and try and achieve that.

Although you can start and catalyze a depression therapy, getting help from a psychologist would speed up the healing process and also make it simpler for you.

There are various websites which you can search to get loads of information about depression therapy, its types and ways to implement to help people suffering from depression.