How to Treat Depression Disorders?

Many of us feel anxious, sad, low or depressed at some point of time or other. But depression disorder (also commonly known as clinical depression) is a kind of mental state where a person feels depressed mostly all throughout the day. A person suffering from this disorder, quite often suffers from anxiety disorder too and vice versa. They need medical or expert help to get over it because it’s a form of illness.

There can be many reasons for depression disorders. Losing a loved one, losing a job, substance or alcohol abuse, long illness and genetics are just a few of them. If left untreated this depression disorder can have very severe consequences.

Symptoms of depression disorder

• Feeling depressed or sad and low all day for weeks at a stretch.

• Losing interest in day to day normal work life, feeling lethargic, fatigued and non – motivated all the time.

• Irritability and restlessness for very trivial reasons

• Either losing weight drastically (without dieting) or gaining sudden weight.

• Insomnia ( sleeplessness at night) or hypersomnia (too much sleeping)

• Lessened ability to concentrate on anything or think about anything. 

• Having anxiety attacks and getting panicked.

• Having suicidal feelings

Treatments for depression and anxiety

There is no exact way of treating anxiety or depression as every person reacts to the treatment in a different way. So the best way out is to stay as knowledgeable as possible about the treatment choices.

Psychotherapy - It is the term used for a treatment where depression or anxiety is treated by talking to a therapist.  There are several forms of effective therapies like cognitive behaviour therapy, exposure therapy, and interpersonal therapy. 

Medication- A huge number of antidepressants and medications are available in the market to treat depression and anxiety disorders. But it is not easy to find the right medication because every medication has its own effects and side effects. You need to consult a doctor or an expert before taking any form of medication for depression disorder.

Herbal treatment - there are many natural remedies and herbal treatments for anxiety and depression that often provides the same results as medications. Some of the tried and tested herbs that have been confirmed to work are Passionflower, Kava, Valerian, St. John’s wort, Magnolia bark, Skullcap and lemon balm.

Lifestyle changes – a simple yet a very powerful way to treat depression and anxiety. A number of studies have shown that eating right and exercising can help to reduce depression. Also the intake of alcohol, too much of caffeine and sugar aggravates depression and anxiety so patients of depression need to stay away from all the above.

Yoga - Yoga makes a person feel relaxed. It trains to breathe in a particular manner that makes the body and mind feel calmer. The yoga-asana or postures when done under a trained person helps to soothe the nervous system and thus helps the mind to feel relaxed and free.

Meditation – Studies have shown that people who practice meditation as a treatment for depression gain positive results. Mediation helps to bring a sense of peace and calmness to the mind and body. It relieves the body from stress and thus brings down the blood pressure and palpitation rate and relaxes the mind.

One needs to eat right, think positive, and lead a healthy lifestyle to get over the feelings of anxiety and depression. But in extreme cases genuine medical help is needed.