1. Antidepressant Medications
To treat depression many people feel comfortable talking to their family physician. There are many medications on the market today that will treat depression by altering brain chemistry and lift the mood of a depressed person. Before prescribing antidepressants, doctors may want to run several tests to make certain that an underlying medical condition is not causing the depression. Once those conditions are ruled out, it may take several weeks after starting an antidepressant before the depression begins to improve. It is not uncommon for the medication dosage to be changed one or more times, or even to have the medication changed for one that is more effective. Finding the right dosage and medication may seem a little daunting at first. With so many options available, doctors are able to adjust as needed when a patient does not seem to respond to one medication or another.
2. Traditional Talk Therapy
Psychotherapy or talk therapy can be one of the most effective ways to treat depression. Medication alone is not able to address some of the underlying emotions and irrational thoughts that often accompany depression. When someone is depressed, they adopt thought processes and patterns that are not found in persons who are not suffering from depression. These thoughts include feelings and thoughts of worthlessness, sadness, loss of interest in everyday activities and even serious thoughts of suicide or self-harm.
Behavioral therapy is often mingled with psychotherapy to treat depression. Behavioral therapy addresses the underlying behaviors that may hinder someone's progress. Specifically, behavioral therapy may address the way a person responds to a particular episode, or it may influence the response that they have to an issue. Some common behavioral therapies include journaling, exercise and modeling positive role models or examples.
3. Exercise
Doctors cannot say enough good things about exercise and its ability to treat depression. Some patients improve with exercise alone, even without the help of antidepressants or therapy. Exercise improves the body's functioning and can even help treat other health conditions like heart disease and diabetes. Studies have been done on specific exercises (such as yoga) and how a depressed person responds to them. For example, researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine noted that yoga can help treat the anxiety that accompanies depression through its use of deep breathing and concentration on the poses.
For some, exercise is not the sole cure, but it does provide health benefits that are not found through other interventions. For example, some antidepressant medications can contribute to weight gain. Exercise can keep a patient's weight under control and limit this bothersome side effect. It can also keep blood pressure and blood sugar at manageable levels, in order to prevent other health conditions from interfering with depression treatment.
