Depression Case Study

Million of Americans go through the blues and sad moments from clinical depression each year. Most patients with depression first seek treatment from a therapist or a primary care provider. However, exercise is a developmental behavior intervention that has displayed strong promise in alleviating symptoms of depression. The objective is examine whether physical activity is associated with depression in an average size population based on gender and age. A total of 310 participates ( 123 Male and 184 females and 3 other ) of UO students and other random volunteered to participate. All participants age ranged from 14 to 99, had to completed two self- report questionnaires. Besides answering question on their exercise habits during the past week, also took into account that all participants also completed CES-D questionnaire that determine their depression levels. In the surveyed there was a lower level of depression with more frequent weekly exercise give it a negative correlation. Also with the duration question, showed a significant negative correlation with the levels of depression. The efficiency of exercise in reducing depression cannot be determined because of the small size of participates and the lack of excellent quality research on population with adequate follow up

ReferencesAnnesi, J. (2005). Changes in depressed mood associated with 10 weeks of moderate cardiovascular exercise in formerly sedentary adults. Psychological Reports, 96, 855-862.

The extensive research of Elkin et al (1989) concluded that cognitive therapy was not an effective treatment method for severely depressed outpatients. This had a major impact on the treatment guidelines of The Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, resulting in medications becoming generally favored at the time. These results, the quality of the therapy provided as well as the conclusions drawn have, however, been questioned by contradicting research which instead argue that cognitive therapy is just as effective in the treatment of depression. Hollon et al (1992) conducted a randomized trial which displayed both treatment methods as effective, with a non-significant difference of efficacy. The study also implied a slight advantage for a combination treatment. Murphy, Carney,

Depressive persons tend to have a lower amount of physical activity because of their lack of motivation. Depression is found in a variety of people, but is especially prevalent among adolescents .But these findings would support us to conclude that physical fitness is therapeutic psychologically and physiologically in treating depression. Prescribing an appropriate regiment of exercise is shown in this study to decrease symptoms of depression in adolescent females.

Heladóttír, Hallgren, Ekblom, Forsell (2016) sought to find an optimal dosage of exercise to elicit positive responses in those diagnosed with depression using three varying intensities. With frequency and duration kept consistent, 620 participants, including ages 18 to 67, were randomly assigned different treatment groups. These included (1) continuing their usual treatment, (2) light exercise like yoga, (3) moderate aerobic exercise, and (4) vigorous aerobic exercise. The training program lasted for 12 weeks, requiring subjects to exercise 55 minutes 3 times a week. The researchers measured depression severity at baseline and post-treatment while monitoring heart rate during every session using a monitor. Following the conclusion of the study, the results indicated that depression severity decreased in al exercise groups. However, the optimal dosage for exercise prescription remains uncertain. These findings suggest that light exercise, such as yoga, were more beneficial than the other intensities

This was a cross-sectional study that took place in the early 70’s, with the connection between physical activity and helping combat depression in the elderly demographic. The value of exercise is widely known for a plethora of reasons, but in regard to depression it has been an invaluable outlet for many; “increased feelings of self-efficacy, self- perceptions of control and mastery, reduced physiologic responses to stress, and beneficial effects on neurotransmitters such as increased serotonin and endorphins” (Kritz-Silverstein, Barrett-Connor, & Corbeau, 2001, p. 596).

Since behavior implications is one of the common associations with depression. One must learn to change behavior to overcome the illness. It is clear that the case has been constructed around the impact of exercise reducing the risk of physical health problems such as CAD, some cancers, obesity, diabetes, and to a lesser extent musculo-skeletal problems such as low back pain and osteoporosis.(Biddle, Fox, Boutcher) To date, much less attention has been paid to the contribution of exercise to the prevention and treatment of the increasingly burgeoning problem of mental disorders, illnesses, and general mental malaise.(Biddle, Fox, Boutcher) Since the out booming influence of physical exercise to achieve optimal health, the focus has been on the productive effects towards physical health and attention has been overlooked towards the benefit in mental ailments.

The trial results are in line with the author’s hypothesis. The experimental group who completed six month exercise regime showed a significant reduction in neuropsychiatric disturbances. Whilst in the control group showed functional and neuropsychiatric deterioration and these disturbances marginally increased.

One potential confounder that could skew the association between exercise and depression symptoms is age. Age is associated with the occurrence of depression; the internal and external stresses of life increase as one gets older, increasing their risk for the disorder [1]. Moreover, adults tend to exercise less as they age, due to less leisure time and decreases in metabolism and muscle mass [18]. Hence, age is also associated with engaging in exercise. However, exercise

The good about the study of the design is that it involved a large experimental group which collected much more data than a smaller sample size. Also the dependent variables were monitored by the scientists conducting the experiment which shows that there would be no bias in the recording of the results (Research Methods in Psychology Lecture, Sept. 2). One more good thing about the study was that it was over a significant amount of time, which can show the long term effects. The bad of the study is that each participant in the experiment monitored their own independent variable which can cause a little bias which in turn can skew the results. Another potentially bad part of the study was that it didn't say that the researchers monitored other variables that could have affected the results, for example the diets of all participants (Sandra Sluts & Kenneth Hess, Science Buddies). If the independent variable was also monitored by the researchers then the experiment would provide much more accurate results. Also if the researchers controlled other factors then the results would also be more

As the literature remains inconclusive as to the relation between current major treatment modalities and depressive disorder, and given the extremities of the potential dangers of antidepressant medications, it is apparent that there is a need to develop new interventions, which show greater efficacy, safety, and acceptability.

“The emotional burden of depression is high, both to those who suffer from it, family members and will have a considerable impact on the functioning of the depressed individual” (Heighadóttir, 2016, p.1). Depression is complex, in such a way that it not only destroys the victim, but the people closest to them. Even more complex is the treatment of depression and discovering a way to benefit the many people who suffer from the disease. Physical exercise at moderate levels has undergone investigation as a possible therapy for not only physical but psychological illnesses. According to Kenneth Pollock (2001) of New York Medical College, “There have been over 25 years of systematic investigation examining

Depression is characterized by having five or more depressive symptoms such as loss of pleasure, depressed mood, weight loss, sleep disturbance, psychomotor agitation, loss of energy, guilt, worthlessness etc. Major depressive disorder is characterized by these same feelings but they have to be present for most days of the week for at least two weeks, must be a change from previous emotions, and are accompanied by somatic, cognitive or affective symptoms. In addition to the significant mental disturbance associated with depression individuals with depression have a 2-4 fold increased risk of adverse health outcomes, specifically cardiac conditions such as coronary heart disease. Once diagnosed with cardiac conditions having depressive symptoms worsens the prognosis, and increases the risk of death after a cardiac event. Blumenthal et all conducted multiple randomized control trials to compare aerobic exercise to antidepressant therapy in individuals with major depressive disorder. In the first standard medical intervention vs long term exercise study 156 adults were randomized into groups. The first group only completed aerobic exercise, the second only used pharmacologic therapy utilizing sertraline, and the last group utilized a combination of sertraline and exercise. Those in the

There are a wide array of benefits aligned with physical activity and exercise. Exercising can impact a person’s mood and psychological personality as well as improve their immune system and overall wellbeing. Throughout the essay, the psychological benefits of exercise, the benefits of exercise on the human body and the recommended level of physical activity for an average sized adult will be investigated and explained. Exercise is a vital aspect of a person’s daily regime and should be included within all lifestyles.

They found that an exercise training programme could be an alternative treatment for MDD. Although antidepressants had a more rapid response than exercise, after 16 weeks of exercise the effectiveness in reducing depression was equal to the anti-depressants. A study also found that a single bout of exercise could result in substantial improvements in mood, which shows that it’s not just duration and frequency. However, it may be that the improvement in mood is only temporary (Dimeo et al., 2001). Lawler and Hopker (2001) stated that effectiveness of exercise on depression couldn’t be determined due to lack of quality research based on clinical populations. They also wrote that the explanations of the results may have been that depressed patients who did regular exercise could have got positive feedback from other people and a sense of self worth, which may act as a diversion from negative thoughts. Physical activity was found to be linked with less coexisting depression, which remains the same after controlling for gender, age, and race. The results of the study showed that physical activity is helpful with medical problems, life stressors and quality of sleep (Harris et al., 2006).