If you suffer from depression or suffer from depressive feelings, it is very important to start therapy as soon as possible. The longer you wait, the longer the depression lasts.
But what treatment methods are there when you are depressed? We asked psychologist Merel Hovestad and Koko Beers, spokesperson at the Brain Foundation.
"The treatment is tailored to the patient's situation and is always tailor-made," says Koko Beers of the Brain Foundation. That is to say:minimal help if possible and intensive help if necessary. The treatment can consist of coaching guidance, psychotherapeutic treatments and/or medication. Sometimes treatments are also combined.'
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Examples are:self-help, online tools (e-health) and guidance to undertake daily activities and to exercise or play sports.
The psychotherapeutic interventions are done in people who suffer from moderate to severe and/or recurrent depression. In psychotherapeutic treatment, people learn methods to better cope with their depression and to reduce their vulnerability to it.
In our brains are active substances that ensure that the different parts communicate well with each other. Serotonin and norepinephrine are two neurotransmitters that are also important in regulating feelings such as anxiety and sadness. Antidepressants affect these neurotransmitters and can lead to recovery. Whether antidepressants are part of the treatment is determined in close consultation with the doctor.
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Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). None of the above treatments lead to an improvement in so-called treatment-resistant depression. ECT is mainly used in people with severe depression, who have not improved sufficiently during treatment with antidepressants. It is also used as the first treatment in patients with very severe depression with delusions or with minimal food and fluid intake. During this treatment, an epileptic seizure is triggered under controlled conditions (anaesthetic and muscle relaxation). In the short term, this is a highly effective treatment in 50 to 60 percent of a specific proportion of treatment-resistant depressed patients. ECT is often a last resort rather than an obvious option for people in an often hopeless situation.
It is not known exactly how electroconvulsive therapy works in the brain. Scientific studies show that especially patients with severe depression with physical symptoms ('melancholic features') and delusions ('psychotic features') benefit from this therapy. The symptoms disappear completely in about 50 to 60% of patients. Patients with melancholic depression symptoms respond best to this therapy.
In our article series about depression, we also regularly speak with psychologist Merel Hovestad of Psychologist Noordwijk. Merel also applies new techniques in her practice. For example, she uses the EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) method with some of her clients. Also known as smart tapping. With this technique you tap certain acupuncture points on your body. By expressing what your fears or beliefs are during this knocking, emotion and sometimes even the conviction can decrease in intensity. Furthermore, Merel tells us that Mindfulness can also help people with depression. She tells more about it in the video below.
{{video poster=http://www.sante.nl/app/uploads/2019/02/depression.jpg src=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D56VV6qbSRQ}}
Other treatment methods are also used for specific forms of depression. For example, light therapy in people with seasonal depression.
Text:Jolien van der Kamp-Gielleit | Image:Shutterstock
