So, all types of depression treatment can be broadly divided into two categories:
- those that involve taking meds, and
- those that don’t.
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| Picture from nps.org.au |
Taking meds is very efficient in stopping bouts of depression; however, it doesn’t eliminate its cause. Common depression medications are:
- sertraline (Zoloft);
- fluoxetine (Prozac);
- citalopram (Celexa);
- desvenlafaxine (Pristiq);
- duloxetine (Cymbalta);
- amitriptyline;
- amoxapine;
- maprotiline;
- bupropion;
- nefazodone;
- vortioxetine (Brintellix);
- isocarboxazid (Marplan);
- phenelzine (Nardil);
- mirtazapine (Remeron).
It is by no means an exhaustive list; there are very many drugs for treating depression. It should be noted that:
- antidepressant drugs are used when depression is SEVERE;
- they should be PRESCRIBED BY A DOCTOR – self-treatment involving their taking is unacceptable.
Now, to drug-free cures for depression. They are as follows:
- psychotherapy;
- yoga;
- massage;
- art therapy;
- psychoacoustics;
- phytotherapy.
Psychotherapy for depression is represented by many currents, the most popular being:
- psychodynamic therapy;
- interpersonal therapy;
- cognitive behavioral therapy;
- NLP;
- hypnosis.
Psychodynamic therapy includes psychoanalysis and its offshoots (Adlerian therapy, Jungian therapy, etc). Interpersonal therapy deals with the patient’s interactions with his/her family members, friends, coworkers. Its goal is improving the patient’s communication skills and increasing his/her self-esteem. Cognitive behavioral therapy focuses on thinking: how it affects feelings and actions of the patient. The key here is to change one’s thinking – then feelings and actions will change, too.
NLP (neuro-linguistic programming) concentrates on the patient’s “representation systems, metaphors and relation matrices” – or, simply put, on the patient’s perception of reality, his/her vision of it, and his/her attitude towards it. The task of NLP psychotherapy is to change the above systems, metaphors and matrices to improve the state of mind of the patient.
Hypnotherapy for depression uses suggestion, imagery, and positive affirmation. Its goal is to bring about positive changes in the unconscious processes of the patient.
As for yoga, its main means of fighting depression is meditation. Yoga poses – asanas – and yoga breathing are used for this purpose, too.
Art therapy involves the use of art materials to create images and objects that help the patient to express him/herself. Then, those images and objects are discussed and interpreted.
Psychoacoustics is based on sound perception. It is also called music therapy. As the name suggests, the patient here listens to some special music.
Phytotherapy is the use of medicinal plants to treat one or another condition. Plants used to fight depression are:
- Rhodiola rosea (Crassulaceae);
- St. John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum);
- Camu Camu (Myrciaria dubia);
- Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera);
- Maca (Lepidium meyenii aka "Peruvian ginseng"), etc (the list goes on).
Massage is used as one of the cures for depression, too. It relieves muscle tension, increases the flow of blood, and helps the patient to relax.
And now, just as I promised at the beginning of the post, I’ll recommend you a tool that you can use to fight depression as well as any other mental problem. This tool is a computer program that, through suggestion, reprograms your mind and thereby changes you the way you want (because suggestion will happen based on instructions you give to the program). FOLLOW THIS LINK TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS UNIQUE TOOL.
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