Do You or Someone You Love Need Depression Treatment?
Have you felt so hopeless, that you no longer find pleasure in activities you once enjoyed? Are you overwhelmed with sadness to the point that you feel chronically fatigued? While experiencing bouts of sadness can be a part of normal emotions that people regularly experience, if you have had feelings of despair or sadness for long periods of time, you may be struggling with depression. Depression is a serious mental health issue that can destroy you or your loved ones as it will affect you physically, psychologically, and socially.
While depression can take form in various disorders, such as postpartum depression or seasonal affective disorder, it can still handicap your ability to thrive as a normal human being. Due to the numerous ways in which your life can be altered by depression, it is crucial that you seek the help and support from a therapist or depression treatment center for guidance in how to better cope with these emotions and intense feelings of sadness. Consider taking the first and most important step towards healing from depression by recognizing the dangerousness of what you have been enduring. Having professional depression treatment can effectively deal with this mental health issue as well as any co-occurring disorders that may exist alongside depression, such as an eating disorder or substance abuse. Obtaining the necessary help you need can draw you out of darkness and into hope for recovery.
Treatment Plan for Depression
By developing a solid treatment plan, you can ensure the most success in your recovery process from depression. By establishing a support system of professionals and loved ones, you can create a core for your recovery from depression that will carry you throughout the entire process. Your support system may consist of loved ones, a therapist, a depression rehabilitation program, and a support group. These four components will contribute tremendously to your ability to find healing in depression recovery process.
- Seek out your loved ones – The role in healing that your friends and family can provide is significant. They are an important component in the depression healing process.
- See a licensed therapist – A licensed therapist provides the personal interaction that can help in dealing with the depression and develop a tailored therapy plan. They will assist in gathering additional resources and entering a depression treatment center.
- Search for a depression treatment facility – A depression program will assist with working through any physical or psychological issues that are present. It will also assist in addressing any ongoing co-occurring issues.
- Support group – A support group can provide accountability and guidance which is important. They will provide assistance when facing the trials of stopping therapy and taking medications. They will be important in assisting to continue treatment.
Treatment Levels for Depression
The level of care needed for depression is often determined by symptoms that are individually being experienced as well as whether or not any co-occurring disorders are involved, such as drug or alcohol abuse. Treatment options will involve varying levels of supervision, therapy, and medications. The following are common levels of care for depression treatment, in order of acuity:
- Outpatient Level of Care – The outpatient level of care offers support services to the patient, such as individual, marital, or family therapy. There are fewer individual limits placed on the patient, but personal treatment and group sessions are still applied.
- Support Groups – Support groups fill a valuable role in overcoming a mood disorder. They provide accountability and understanding as the members have all gone through similar situations.
Types of Pharmacological Therapy for Depression Treatment
Antidepressants are the most common medications used for the treatment of depression, especially in severe cases. A type of antidepressant medication used is the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRIs), which helps relief depression symptoms by altering hormones in the brain affecting mood. Other types of medications include the following:
- COX-2 Inhibitors
- Tricyclic antidepressants
- Monoamine oxidase inhibitors
All medications should be managed, prescribed, and overseen by your physician. Be sure to discuss pharmaceutical management of your depression with your doctor and treatment team.
Types of Therapy for Depression Treatment
One of the most impactful and helpful forms of treatment for any form of depression is psychotherapy. A depression treatment center will integrate many forms of psychotherapy to encourage growth, healing, recovery, and the fostering of healthy coping techniques. There are also other alternative therapy approaches that can be utilized along with psychotherapy, including art, yoga, music, meditation, and dance therapy. The types of psychotherapies more commonly employed for the treatment of depression include:
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) – This category of rehabilitation is designed to work on a patient’s maladaptive ways of thinking as a way influencing their behavior with an approach that is more positive. This also allows negative coping skills to be replaced with positive coping skills.
- Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) – This rehabilitation type pays attention to the interpersonal relationships and cultural roles using concise supportive analysis and works to assist patient’s to uncover better tools to address problems and issues that currently exist. IPT has four main elements, which are relationship shortcomings, unresolved grief, role disputes, and role changes.
- Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) – DBT uses the standard behavioral therapies like CBT and IPT for emotion regulation. It introduces mindful awareness and stress management components into the therapy.
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) – ACT is a type of cognitive behavioral therapy that uses acceptance and mindfulness strategies combined in various ways with commitment and behavior-change strategies. This is to increase mental and emotional flexibility.
- Supportive Programs – These are programs like support groups, group therapy, family therapy, etc. These support groups allow those suffering with bipolar disorder to seek guidance from those that have dealt with depression longer.
Depression no longer needs to hold you captive, unable to function or live to your fullest potentials. Are you ready to being the healing process from depression? Take the first step towards getting the help and care you need and deserve by asking for the help you need to succeed. Living with depression may have destroyed your passions, aspirations, or crushed the joy you once found in living. You can gain this and more back by receiving the help you need for depression. Consider taking the first step towards healing and access the resources available on Addiction Hope to get connected with a depression recovery center today.
Last Updated & Reviewed By: Jacquelyn Ekern, MS, LPC on April 25th, 2013
Published on AddictionHope.com, Substance Abuse Help Resource