Common Treatments for Depression

Depression is one of the most common symptoms to cause a person to visit their primary care physician or contact a mental health professional. But being depressed and having clinical depression are not the same thing. Here are ways you can tell if you should seek help for your depressed feelings, and a broad description of common treatment for depression disorders. 

You Can Be Depressed Without Having Depression

Most everyone experiences depression at one time or another. It is an overwhelming feeling of sadness, numbness, or emptiness that persists despite moment-to-moment events. Depression is most often a reaction to loss, whether it is a form of grief, or a reaction to some negative life event. This kind of everyday depression often does not require any special intervention or treatment to pass. It may fade on its own. If not, talking to friends and family and surrounding yourself with support may be enough to move through that phase and get relief from the symptoms. 

However, depressive symptoms can range from short-lasting (acute) and mild to chronic and severe. The more intense your depressive symptoms are, the more likely they are to have a significant impact on your everyday life. In the most severe cases, depressive disorders can lead to thoughts of suicide or self-harm. If you begin to experience these more serious symptoms, or if milder symptoms are pervasive, disruptive, and do not fade over time, you may need to seek medical help.

Talk to Your Primary Doctor About Depression

Your primary physician is often the best first stop in seeking treatments for depression. Given the prevalence of the mental health concern, many primary care offices now include depression screening as part of their everyday check-up paperwork. Talking to your doctor about your depression symptoms can help because they can help determine if there is a physical cause for your symptoms. 

Most depression does not have a physical cause, but many depression symptoms are physical, including: 

• Fatigue, 
• Insomnia or oversleeping, 
• Headaches, 
• Stomach aches
• Body aches
• Changes to appetite 
• Loss of sex drive 

There may be other explanations for these symptoms, including the effect of diet, behavior, life stresses, physical illnesses, or even hormonal concerns. Your primary care physician can rule out these alternative diagnoses, and can provide medication to relieve many physical symptoms. 

Common Depression Diagnoses

Just like anxiety, and phobias, depression is a category of mental health disorders. Just because two people “have depression” doesn’t mean they will experience things the same way. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, often known as the “DSM-5” is the tool psychotherapists and doctors use to diagnose different types of mental health and brain-related conditions and disorders. The DSM-5 includes several common depressive disorders:

Major Depressive Disorder (Clinical Depression)

A person suffering Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) feels sad, low, or worthless most days for a period of at least two weeks, in addition to physical symptoms and a loss of interest in activities or motivation. While MDD is one of the most common types of depression, it can also be the most severe. 

Persistent Depressive Disorder (PDD)

Persistent Depressive Disorder is a more mild form of depression that lasts for a prolonged period of time (at least two years). Despite being long-lasting, the symptoms of PDD are usually not as severe as MDD.

Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)

Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD) is a form of depression characterized by chronic, intense irritability and frequent anger outbursts. DMDD is most often diagnosed in children, with symptoms beginning by age 10. While adults may not be diagnosed with DMDD, they may continue to struggle with symptoms that originally arose in childhood.

Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD)

Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) is a form of depression that focuses on mood symptoms, including irritability, anxiety, or depression, tied to the experience of a person’s premenstrual cycle. These symptoms often only last a few days at a time, but can be severe during that window.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (Seasonal Depression)

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) or seasonal depression typically arises in the fall and winter, possibly due to the reduced amount of sunlight you experience. Symptoms generally resolve in the spring. 

Prenatal or Postpartum Depression

Many people experience depressive symptoms around childbirth, either during pregnancy or within the first month of delivery. Prenatal and postpartum depression are types of MDD with a specific triggering event. 

Atypical Depression

Not all depression fits neatly in a box. Sometimes, a person may have depression without sadness, or experience mood disorders and disruption even if they sometimes experience positive mood elevation in response to good things happening. 

Common Treatments for Depression Diagnoses

No matter what type of depression diagnoses you receive, getting effective treatment is key to reducing your symptoms and improving your daily life. 

Medication for Depression Symptoms

Often, but not always, treatment for depression begins with a short period of medication, either anti-depressants, which lift your mood, or other medications that treat specific symptoms. Common treatments for depression’s physical symptoms, such as muscle aches or insomnia, last just a few weeks with the right medication, dosage, and follow-up treatment. However, in cases of severe depression, ongoing medication can sometimes be used for weeks or even months before you notice improvement. There are also significant side effects that should be considered before starting, stopping, or changing pharmaceutical treatment. 

Psychotherapy Finds the Root Cause of Depression

Psychotherapy, including Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) is a common treatment for depression. It involves discussing symptoms, triggers, and experiences of depressive symptoms within a safe environment with a trained psychotherapist. The goals of psychotherapy can differ and are defined for each patient, but they often include identifying the negative thought patterns that make depressive symptoms worse, and then breaking those patterns down piece by piece. A psychologist may also take a psychoanalytic approach to identifying and resolving unconscious patterns and issues affecting the person. In a family setting, such as couples counseling, your counselor may also use systemic therapy to identify and address how your relationships are affecting your depression, and vice versa. 

Establishing Healthy Habits to Reduce Depressive Episodes

It may surprise you, but one of the most effective treatments for depression does not have to involve any professionals at all. Depression has to do with imbalances in the chemicals in your brain. You can do a lot to regulate those chemicals just by establishing healthy habits for your life. Things as simple as setting regular times to go to bed and wake up, or engaging in sports, exercise, or dance can help reduce depressive symptoms and even eliminate episodes entirely. 

Coping Techniques to Deal with Depression Symptoms

For more situational or mild forms of depression, your psychotherapist may focus more on reducing your symptoms than uncovering the deep causes of your mental health disorder. Even in cases of severe MDD, there will be times when a psychologist isn’t immediately available and you need to know what to do. Your psychotherapist can help you develop coping techniques that interrupt your negative thoughts about yourself, change patterns of self-destructive behaviors, and reset your brain before your mood disorder can negatively affect your behavior or experiences. 

David Stanislaw is a psychotherapist with over 35 years of experience. He helps adults, teens and children with depression, suicidal ideation, and other mental health concerns. Contact David Stanislaw to get help today.