Depression Physical Treatment

Depression Physical Treatment

Depression Treatment

I have simply read about these treatments on web, newspapers and magazines.

I am not an expert on Depression diagnosis or treatment. Please consider the content of this blog for reference purpose only. Always see a doctor for medical advices. I am not responsible for any mishappenings, if any, on following this blog.

Physical Treatment

Kind of Physical depression treatments:

* Drug treatments

* Electroconvulsive therapy

1. Drug Treatments

There are three groups of drugs most likely to be used for depression:

* Antidepressants

* Tranquillisers

* Anti-manic drugs or mood stabilisers

Antidepressants

* There is a large number of antidepressants - they have a role in many types of depression and vary in their effectiveness across the more biological depressive conditions.

* Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), Tricyclics (TCAs) and Irreversible Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOIs) are three common classes of antidepressants. They each work in different ways and have different applications.

* At the Institute we believe that they are not, however, equally effective and that it is necessary to find the right antidepressant for each person.

* If the first antidepressant does not work, it is sensible to move to a different kind of antidepressant. For the biological depressive disorders, more broad action antidepressants are usually more effective.

* A well-informed health provider should be able to use their assessment of the type of depression, its likely causes and their understanding of the person to identify the medication most likely to benefit.

Tranquillisers

These medications are usually called 'minor' or 'major' tranquillisers.

* Minor tranquillisers (typically benzodiazepines) are not helpful in depression; they are addictive and can make the depression worse.

* Major tranquillisers are very useful in people with a psychotic depression and in melancholia where the person is not being helped by other medications.

It is important to remember that the anti-depressants and mood stabilisers are often necessary both to treat the depression that is occurring now, and to make a relapse in the future less likely. So people sometimes need to continue taking medication for some time after they are better.

2. Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)

Because of its controversial past many people feel the need to think carefully before having ECT or allowing it to be given to relatives.

Clinicians at the Institute firmly believe that ECT has a small but important role in treatment, particularly in cases of

* Psychotic depression

* Severe melancholia where there is a high risk of suicide or the patient is too ill to eat, drink or take medications

* Life-threatening mania

* Severe post-natal depression.