Overview :
Depression drains your drive, hope, and energy, making it difficult to take the steps that will help you feel better. Sometimes, just thinking about the things you should do to feel better, such as exercising or spending time with friends, can seem exhausting and impossible to put into action. Things that help the most are the things that are most difficult to do. There is a big difference, however, between something that is impossible. While recovering from depression is not easy and quick, you do have more control than you realize, even if your depression is severe and persistent.
The aim is to start small and build lifestyle changes from there. You may not have much energy, but by drawing on all your reserves, you should have enough to take a walk around the block or pick up the phone to call a loved one. Taking the first step is always the hardest.
But going for a walk or getting up and dancing to your favorite music, for instance, is something you can do right now. It can substantially boost your energy and mood for several hours. They are long enough to put a second recovery step into action, including preparing a mood-boosting meal and arranging to meet an old friend. By taking small but positive steps day by day, you will soon lift the heavy fog of depression and find yourself feeling hopeful, healthier, and happier again.
Treatment for depression
You may successfully manage symptoms with one form of treatment or find that a combination of treatments works best. It is common to combine medical treatments and lifestyle therapies such as:
Medications
Your medical professional may prescribe:
Serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors or SNRIs
It helps to treat depression by increasing the amount of neurotransmitters serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain. SNRIs should not be taken with MAOIs. If you have kidney or liver problems or narrow-angle glaucoma, you should take it with caution. Some examples of this drug are venlafaxine, milnacipran, levomilnacipran, duloxetine, and desvenlafaxine.
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or SSRIs
It is the most commonly prescribed antidepressants drugs by increasing the availability of the neurotransmitter serotonin in your brain. SSRIs should not be taken with certain medicines such as monoamine oxidase inhibitors and, in some cases, thioridazine or Orap.
An individual who is pregnant should consult their medical professional about the risks of taking this medicine during pregnancy. You should also use it with caution if you have narrow-angle glaucoma. Examples of this drug are sertraline, paroxetine, fluvoxamine, escitalopram, and citalopram.
Tricyclic and tetracyclic antidepressants
It treats depression by increasing the amount of the neurotransmitter serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain. TCAs can cause more side effects than SNRIs and SSRIs. Avoid taking them with MAOIs. Always use it with caution if you have symptoms of narrow-angle glaucoma.
Some examples of this medicine are protriptyline, nortriptyline, desipramine, trimipramine, imipramine, doxepin, and amitriptyline.
Monoamine oxidase inhibitors or MAOIs
It helps to treat depression by increasing the level of norepinephrine, tyramine, dopamine, and serotonin in the brain. Due to side effects and safety concerns, it is generally not used only if other medications are unsuccessful at treating depression. Some examples of MAOIs are tranylcypromine, selegiline, phenelzine, and isocarboxazid.
Psychotherapy
Consulting a therapist may help you to learn skills to cope with negative feelings. You can also benefit from group and family therapy sessions. It is also known as talk therapy, where an individual speaks to a trained therapist to identify and learn to cope with the factors that may contribute to their mental health condition, such as depression.
Psychotherapy has been shown to be an effective treatment in improving symptoms in people with depression and other types of psychiatric disorders. It is often used alongside pharmaceutical treatment. There are many different types of psychotherapy, and some people respond better to one type than another.
CBT or cognitive behavioral therapy
In this type of therapy, a professional therapist will work with you to uncover unhealthy patterns of thoughts and identify how they may be causing harmful beliefs, reactions, and behaviors about yourself. Your therapist may assign you homework where you practice replacing negative thoughts with more positive reviews.
Psychodynamic therapy
It is a form of talk therapy designed to help you better understand and cope with your day-to-day life. This therapy is based on the idea that your present-day reality by your unconscious childhood experiences. In this form of treatment, your therapist will help you to reflect on and examine your childhood and knowledge to help you understand and cope with your life.
Electroconvulsive therapy
It uses electrical currents to induce a seizure and has been shown to help an individual with clinical depression. It is used in people with severe depression or depression that is resistant to other treatments or antidepressant drugs. During this therapy procedure, you will receive an anesthetic agent who will put you to sleep for approximately five to ten minutes.
Your medical professional will place cardiac monitoring pads on your chest and four electrodes on specific areas of your head. It will then deliver short electrical pulses for a few seconds. You will neither convulse nor feel the electrical current and will awaken for about five to ten minutes after the treatment.
Some side effects may include disorientation, confusion, soreness, muscle aches, nausea, and headaches. Some patients may also develop memory problems, but these usually reside in the weeks and months after the treatment.
What are the natural remedies to cure depression?
Everything feels more challenging when you are dealing with depression. Such as socializing with friends, getting out of bed, or even going to work feels like a struggle. But there are some things you can do to cope with your symptoms and improve your quality of life. These excellent tips will help to cope with depression:
Reduce stress
When you are struggling with depression or stress, your body produces more hormones known as cortisol. It is a good thing because it helps you gear up to cope with whatever is causing you stress in the short term. But when it heads up for an extended period, it may cause many problems for you, such as depression. The more you use techniques to reduce stress, the better it will help to reduce the risk of becoming depressed.
Maintain sleep hygiene
Mood and sleep are intimately interconnected. A study found that about 80 percent of an individual with the major depressive disorder may experience sleep disturbances. But, you may feel like you just cannot fall asleep. You struggle to get out of bed as you may feel exhausted all time.
Good sleeping hygiene can be key to improving the quantity and quality of sleep. When you are going to sleep, turn off all the electronic gadgets at least one hour before you go to sleep. Use dim light to read a book and engage in another relaxing activity.
Eliminate negative thoughts
Depression does not just make you feel bad; it can also cause you to think more negatively. Changing those negative thoughts can improve your mood. CBT is a type of behavioral therapy that helps to alter common patterns of negative thinking called cognitive distortions in order to eliminate depression. There are also many self-help books that can help you learn how to change your unhealthy thinking patterns.
Conclusion
Depression can be temporary, or it can be a long-term challenge. Treatment does not always make your depression fade away completely. However, treatment often makes symptoms more manageable. Managing symptoms of depression involve finding the right combination of therapies and medications.
If one treatment does not work, talk with your medical professional. They can also help you create a different treatment plan that may work better in helping you manage your conditions.