Depression
May 29, 2011 No CommentsWell meaning people who have never experienced depression personally may tell a depressed person to snap out of it.
Unfortunately, that is not easily done.
You see, the levels chemicals within the brain of a depressed person are substantially different from one who does not suffer from this dog.
Depression is an illness which can be treated.
Medical science can treat depression. First, the chemical imbalance could be due to lower than normal levels of serotonin and dopamine in the brain. That’s something medicine can help.
SSRIs or Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors can work wonders if the right one at the right dosage is chosen. A medical doctor, in this case, a psychiatrist, is the person to approach for help in the case of depression. A psychiatrist is the one who prescribes the medicine and who adjusts the dosage based on the patient’s feedback. Regular sessions with the psychiatrist are necessary to monitor the progress of the patient and the efficacy of the drugs in treating this particular patient.
Drugs alone aren’t enough. They merely deal with the symptoms of a deeper problem. Counselling or talk therapy helps the patient uncover the root of the problem that triggered depression.
I have a confession to make. I’m not a doctor, but a patient currently undergoing treatment for depression, so I know how it feels like not to want to live anymore… how hard it is to drag myself out of bed to face yet another day.. what it is like to depend on medication to be able to go to work and to be productive in my job.
In my culture, there is a stigma associated with seeing a psychiatrist. I dare not let anyone know as I’m afraid it will be held against me in my course of work. Yet I want to.. I need to get cured. I have kids to raise. I also need to bring in the bacon.
I dealt with my depression naturally at first.
Running daily, with the endorphins responsible for the runner’s high help with chemical imbalance to some extent. Chocolates too help relieve the plunging lows, though that comes with the price — a ballooning waistline.
Talking it out with friends I trust keep me sane. Bottling up is unhealthy. Carthisis, the purging of emothions through talking to a trusted friend is invaluable.
I had a miscarriage. I guess that was the trigger. I turned to my doctor for help. My doctor referred me to psychiatrist.
The psychiatrist prescribed my medication, the SSRI fluroxamine at the lowest dosage. He was confident that would pull me out of this. After I’m back to normal, I’d have to keep taking the medication for another 6 months to stabilize then I can go off the medicine. After taking notes on my background and the stressors I face in life, the doctor was concerned that unless these are dealt with, the depression would relapse.
The psychiatrist’s role is to prescribe and monitor the medication. Coming to the root of the problem and helping the patient develop coping strategies would be the role of the counsellor — a social worker, religious worker, or from the medical profession — the psychologist.
I chose to see a psychologist.
My psychiatrist referred me to one. It’s basically talk therapy. She’s someone I can talk to with full assurance that none of the confidences will be broken. She asked probing questions. I talked. She listened sympathetically. Talk therapy. Emotional purging in a safe environment. That was what I needed. At the end of it, her advice was simple –> to make time for myself and schedule in things I love, to do just for myself, twice a week. That I did. It really helps.
I’m confident of recovery. I also seek help from my God, Jesus Christ. I’m certain that sooner or later, I will be whole again.
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