Non Pharmacological Vs. Pharmacological Depression Treatment
It is estimated that thirty-two to thirty-five million U.S. citizens will experience depression during their life (DeRubeis, Hollon, Siegle 2). Depression can be treated with a Non Pharmacological method that is therapy or a Pharmacological method that is medication. Non Pharmacological Treatments (NPTs) are more effective when treating depression. All forms of NPT reduce depression symptoms and there is little to no side effects, in most of the methods.
Unlike Pharmacological Treatment, all NPT methods are proven to reduce depression symptoms. According to the article, Interpersonal Therapy (IPT), in twenty weeks or less of being treated with this method, someone will start to get relief from the symptoms of depression (4). Another strategy to reduce depression symptoms would be to do cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT is a, “common type of talk therapy” that, “can be an
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Some people say that because CBT doesn’t always cure depression or because it doesn’t make an, “unpleasant situation go away” that CBT isn’t effective to recovering from depression (Mayo Clinic Staff 6). While this is true, The Mayo Clinic Staff continues on and says, “But it can give you the power to cope with your situation in a healthy way and to feel better about yourself and your life” (6). Not one treatment can get rid of someone’s depression completely, all it can do is help by reducing depressive symptoms.
One of the issues that always occurs when someone is trying to recover from an illness of some kind is the side effects that the treatments can give someone. Almost no NPT treatments have side effects besides emotional distress, but pharmacological treatments do have side effects. Joseph F. Goldberg, a clinical professor of psychiatry at Icahn School of Medicine, explains, Pharmacological treatments can have side effects ranging
I do not like that people can take antidepressants and CBT can be effective in treating major depression. I believe with the help of a therapist, there is no need to put any medication in the body. There are so many application of CBT such as bipolar disorder, anxiety,
CBT also fails to recognise the impact of situations or experiences that are out of the control of the individual and places total responsibility on the individual. Further, research has shown that although CBT is superior in treating anxiety and depression it does so only by reducing/eliminating symptoms and does little to increase well-being, however with a renewed emphasis incorporating symptom reduction and increased quality of life this appears to be changing (Oei & McAlinden,
Research has shown that cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can be as successful as medicine in treating many types of depression and other mental health disorders it can be completed in a relatively short time compared with other talking therapies and because it is highly structured, CBT can be provided in a number of different formats such as through computer programs, groups and self-help books. Some research suggests that CBT may be better than antidepressants at preventing the return of depression. It is thought to be one of the most effective treatments for anxiety and depression.
One way of treating depression is CBT, or Cognitive behaviour therapy, this helps the person to stop thinking unhelpful thoughts by ensuring they do enough enjoyable activities each day (The Australian Psychological Society Limited, 2016). Another way is IPT, or Interpersonal psychotherapy, this form of treatment is directed at the person’s relationships and the way they view others this is achieved by finding alternate ways to view these particular things (The Australian Psychological Society Limited, 2016). And one other way of dealing with depression is STPP, or Short-term psychodynamic psychotherapy, this targets a person’s feelings, desires and motivations, this stops the person from coming up with excuses as to why they can’t do something (The Australian Psychological Society Limited, 2016). Although these ways to help to manage and deal with depression, they do not prevent it, but studies have shown that with a healthy lifestyle, which includes, a healthy diet, regular exercise, and occasional relaxation can help prevent becoming depressed (WebMD, 2016). The government is trying to keep Australians of all ages safe, and free of depression, there are websites that have been created by the Australian Government, that give people the chance to contact professionals so that they can
There are many different forms of CBT and the target population varies depending on the form. Some of the many different forms include: trauma-focused CBT for children, CBT for late-life depression, and CBT for adolescent depression to name a few; each form has a variety of age groups intended as its target population. For example CBT for adolescent depression has the target population of individuals ages 13-17 and 18-25 whereas CBT for late-life depression has the target population of individuals ages 55 and older (NREPP, 2014) CBT differs from other forms of psychotherapy in the sense the sessions have more structure. Those with specific focus and goal may benefit more from CBT. It is less suitable for someone who feels vaguely unhappy or unfulfilled, but doesn’t have any symptoms or a particular aspect of their life they want to work on. CBT is effective for a wide variety of mental health disorders, including but not limited to mood, anxiety, personality, eating, substance abuse, sleep, and psychotic
“Non-medical prescribing is prescribing which is taken by a health professional who is not a doctor” (Non-medical prescribing 2012).To become a non-medical prescriber the relevant training must be undertaken to ensure the patients’ safety is most important. The health care professional who is the non-medical prescribers is only legally allowed to prescribe within their area of expertise and they must remain competent within that area, through maintenance of various continuing education and training programmes.
There is a recent debate is on the different treatment methods for depression and which are the most effective. The
CBT would seem effective where a problem can be talked through, but what happens of the negative event can’t be removed or understood better as in the case of individuals with an imminently life terminating event causing depression.
Reviews of research on psychotherapy versus antidepressants with evidence supported methods were used. WebPages along with the reading of numerous studies
Treatments using anti-depressants is well documented, but there are very few studies documenting only the use of psychotherapy. However, in one study done using the Cognitive–behavioral analysis system of psychotherapy (CBASP) as a maintenance treatment, the overall findings show that psychotherapy in itself can be successful. “ There were 82 patients who were treated with CBASP long term. Patients were chosen at random to reduce their treatment to monthly or to an observational status. The patients, only treated monthly with CBASP, showed a smaller amount of reoccurring symptoms then the patients in the observational status. These findings support the use of only CBASP as a maintenance treatment for depression.” (Klein, 2004)
A probable reason why CBT works with depressed patients is that depression interacts with both cognitive and motivational processes. This is well evidenced in experimental analogue research with healthy and depressed individuals. Individuals with depression show deficits on a range of cognitive tests (Brown, Scott, Bench, 1994) with the pattern of dysfunction having many of the characteristics associated with fronto-subcortical impairment. Reischies and Neu (2000) found that depressed individuals displayed mild cognitive impairments in comparison with matched controls, particularly in the areas of "adverbial" memory, psychomotor speed and verbal fluency. Further in these patients there appears to be considerable variation in the recovery of cognitive function with remission of the depressive episode.
Depression is a very hard illness to cure, but, daily antidepressants and weekly or monthly therapy can help depression over time. Depressive symptoms can be temporarily “fixed” by antidepressants, but more than likely, the depression will set in again. Although, if you use the drug treatment and therapy, depression has a lesser chance of returning. A new study with 595 patients with major depression showed that the best treatment plan involves a combination of psychotherapy and drug therapy. Fred Duman, M.D. says, “Even patients prescribed medication alone need psychological attention. Knowledgeable clinicians can miss things like poor compliance, life stresses and substance abuse that can interfere with the medication’s working.” Furthermore, psychotherapy and antidepressants together can help cure depression, which is why depression should be treated this
CBT has shown to be as useful as antidepressant medication for individuals with depression and is superior in preventing relapse. Clients receiving CBT for all depression disorders are encouraged to schedule activities in order to increase the amount of pleasure they experience. In addition, depressed patients learn how to restructure negative thought patterns in order to interpret their environment in a less biased way. CBT for Bipolar Disorder and the high-risk depressed client is used as an adjunct to medication treatment and focuses on psychoeducation about the disorder and understanding cues and triggers for relapse. The client will have more reason to gain more confidence in them. Studies indicate
Like antidepressant medications, therapy can have its downsides as well and not work for every case of depression. My dad, who struggles with severe depression, has tried using counselling and other forms of therapy to conquer his depression, yet none
It has primarily been utilized as a short-term (approximately 16 week) therapy, but has also been modified for use as a maintenance therapy for patients with recurrent depression. (Interpersonal psychotherapy, 2015)