After a person is diagnosed with depression, the doctor is the only person in charged and authorized to recommend a treatment. Usually this is prescribed depending on the type of depression a person has, some are prescribed antidepressants or psychotherapy, other with a combination of both and in a few cases the electroconvulsive therapy is used.
Psychotherapy:
Also known as ¨talk therapy¨ is a very effective treatment for clinical depression, however. if used on its own for severe depression, it is not as effective but it does play an important role when used along with medicines or other treatments.
Psychotherapy mainly focus on developing a series of coping strategies, so the person can handle everyday stressors, and additionally encouraging the patient to use medication in a very organized, healthy way. Though many think that this type of treatment does not help, others do and believe that it works betterwhen medication is also involved and not by itself since it helps patients to stick with the medicine for a long time. If not totally effective, it is proven that it eases daily life tasks, reduces stress, helps patient to deal with medicine´s side effects, it provides a different view of the problem, and helps on the detection of worsening symptoms.Types of psychotherapy:
Cognitive, behavioral, and cognitive-behavioral therapy: these three types focus on thought and behaviors that contribute to depression, it will help patients to react differently in certain situations by applying problem-solving techniques.
Interpersonal therapy: it focuses on the different relationships that may be contributing to the depression, and will help identify unhealthy behaviors.
Psychodynamic therapy: this is the traditional therapy in which the roots, traumas that causes patient´s depression are explored.
Individual Counseling: is a one on one session with an expert or professional therapist on mental/ mood disorders, and will help the patient understand the type of depression diagnosed and how to identify and deal with the stressful situations that triggers depression and prevent it from getting worse or coming back by changing certain habits, continue with the medicine, and seeing a doctor on a regular basis.
Family Counseling: as its name says it, is a therapy that involves of the family member of the patient, since they also are affected by depression, and need to learn how to deal with it, since without noticing when trying to help their family member they may be making things worse. So it is very important that they are being guide and learn how to detect and deal with the signs and symptoms.
Group therapy: it is more of a support group in which therapies are received with others who also suffer from depression and are in the coping process, and will share their experiences.
Depression medicines are very helpful to lift your mood and ease or reduce the sadness, or blue feelings experienced in depression, the patient must work with the doctor in order to find the right medicine with fewer side effects as possible that can help and reduce depression symptoms.
Antidepressants:
Antidepressants are a medication used to treat mood disorders such as depression, anxiety, and dysthymia. In addition to therapy this is the first treatment approached when depression is diagnosed. If, the medicine does not work effectively, another will be prescribed under the same class of antidepressants or a different one if they continue not to work. Another possibility is to change the dose, or combine to antidepressants. This may be a long process until the right drug is found, the important thing is not to quit trying no matter how disappointing and hopeless it looks.
Antidepressant Types:
It is believed that three different brain chemicals messengers are related to depression, they are: norepinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine that are neurotransmitters that provides signals between brain cells.
Researchers have agreed that unbalance in these chemicals and depression are linked, reason why it is thought that changes in these chemicals improve mood and depression symptoms, however, the way it works is still unknown.
- Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Alters the amount of serotonin.
- Serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs). Increases availability of the brain chemicals serotonin and norepinephrine.
- Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs). Mainly affect the levels of norepinephrine and serotonin. Although these drugs are effective in treating depression, they can have more side effects than other drugs. So they typically aren't the first drugs used.
- Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). MAOIs are most effective in people who do not respond to other treatments. They are also effective for treating other mental illnesses. Substances in certain foods like cheese, beverages like wine, and medications can interact with an MAOI. So people taking this drug must adhere to strict dietary restrictions. For this reason these antidepressants also aren't usually the first drugs used.
Stimulants:
These are agents that increase physical activity, and mental alertness. Stimulants or anti-anxiety drugs are prescribed to be used in combination with antidepressants since they do not work effectively when taken alone. They are also recommended for those who have co-existing physical or mental disorders.
Other treatments:
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT): this is mostly used to treat those patients with severe depression who do not respond to therapies, or are a threat for themselves and it is very dangerous to wait for the drug make and effect. ECT is basically a procedure done by a doctor in whom the patient must be sedated and short electric current passes through the scalp and finally going to the brain inducing a seizure.
Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS): used in treatment-resitant depression patient, this consists of a device implanted in the body similar to a pacemaker, which regularly delivers electric impulses to the vagus nerve which relays information to and from the brain.
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS): this is a device that creates a magnetic field that impulse less strong electric charges than the ECT, in a specific part of the brain and does not cause seizures or loss of consciousness.
