Any experienced psychologist will tell you that our lives have changed qualitatively. Depression, unfortunately, often becomes practically a way of life for a modern person. The daily life of towns and cities is so overflowing with information and emotionally intense that many relatively healthy physically and mentally people fall into a depressed state. Depression occurs as a result of emotional overload, the pace of life at which a person simply cannot cope with the psychological problems that have “fallen” on him.
And before talking about a depressive state, you should learn to distinguish a normal low mood from true depression. If the problem is a bad mood, it can be easily solved with exercise or chocolate. In a more serious case, a person needs help from a psychologist for depression. At the same time, turning to a psychologist for help with depression does not free you from independent work on yourself. First of all, it is necessary to communicate with people who seem pleasant, not least a healthy lifestyle, and most importantly, all this has a psychologically positive effect.
Depression is not as harmless as it seems to some at first glance. In this state, a person experiences depressed emotional depression, even to the point of mental disorder. Depression can overtake a person after certain negative psychological events have occurred in his life. But in our time it has been established that sometimes it occurs for no apparent reason. During the depressive period, a person’s state changes, helplessness and apathy arise, constant melancholy, anxiety for any reason. A person with depression feels guilty and believes that he is intellectually incompetent. With all this, there is absolute lack of will.
Depression and bad mood - what's the difference?
First of all, you should pay attention to the duration of this condition and the persistence of symptoms. If the feeling of depression easily evaporates after a joyful event or a pleasant pastime, then, most likely, it was only a situational reaction to some negative event. With depression, the emotional background is practically independent of the influence of external factors - even those that once caused a surge of positive emotions.
The second key sign of depression is the depth and intensity of the feelings experienced. Depression is accompanied by feelings of melancholy, powerlessness, hopelessness, hopelessness and despair, and these feelings can be so unbearable that in some cases they even cause thoughts of suicide.
And finally, depression often affects the physical state: a person suffering from depression may, for example, experience sleep disturbances, decreased sexual desire, motor retardation, loss or increase in appetite, changes in blood pressure, etc. If similar symptoms are observed, and a medical examination does not reveal signs of any disease, then with a high degree of probability the physical ailment is of the same nature as a mood disorder.
If you or your loved ones experience the above symptoms, then there is a high probability that the condition you are experiencing is indeed depression - and therefore requires contacting a specialist. Which specialist it will be - a psychologist or a psychiatrist - depends on the type of depression.
How many consultations may be required?
The number of consultations depends on the causes of depression, as well as the severity and duration of symptoms. The longer a person is depressed, the more counseling will be required to change their mental state and work through the causes of depression. For mild forms of depressive disorder, 3 to 5 consultations may be required. For prolonged depressive disorder lasting 1 year or more, psychological help for depression can take from 5 to 10 consultations.
Types of depression
Depression is divided into endogenous, that is, caused by internal causes, and exogenous, caused by external causes (it is also called reactive or psychogenic). The causes of endogenous depression include both metabolic disorders of the brain and physiological and psychological trauma. Such depression should be treated primarily not by a psychologist, but by a psychiatrist, since in most cases its treatment will require medication support, and psychological assistance will perform an additional, albeit important, function.
As for reactive depression, as the name suggests, it occurs as a reaction to some external circumstances, and its causes lie in a person’s deep (and often unconscious) subjective dissatisfaction with his own life, even if outwardly it looks like the ultimate dream for many people. For this type of depression, it is recommended to consult a psychologist.
How can a psychologist help you?
A psychologist for depression will help you understand the causes of depressive disorder and give recommendations for treating depression. In cases of mild depression, the help of a psychologist is usually sufficient. The help of a psychologist for depression is necessary in order to eliminate its psychological causes. In case of clinical depression, a psychologist may recommend contacting a psychiatrist to supplement psychotherapeutic treatment with medication.
Psychological help for depression
Precisely because of the subjectivity of the depressive state (an event that for one person will pass without a trace, for another can become a severe psychological trauma), and also due to the fact that, as already mentioned, the word “depression” is often referred to as a decrease in mood, there is a risk of not notice and miss a really serious state of depression. Due to the “abuse” of this term, there are often cases when even the closest people do not take complaints of depression seriously, perceiving it as a “whim” or “the blues” and, as a result, limit themselves to advice like “treat yourself with something tasty”, “take a hot bath”, “read a good book” (not to mention comments like “you’re making up problems out of the blue”). Such a devaluing reaction from others, especially if it comes from close people, often leads to the fact that a person withdraws even more into himself, tries to fight his condition on his own (and dissatisfaction with life and himself increases) - and thereby plunges even more into depression.
It is important not to ignore your emotional state, even if it has accompanied you for quite a long time and you have become accustomed to it. In no case should one consider a loss of interest in life, a feeling of apathy and a feeling of depression as the norm, and in the same way it is pointless to try to suppress depression, to “distract” from it. The fact is that depression is essentially a signal sent by the psyche when it requires qualitative changes: either in a person’s way of thinking and value system, or directly in any area of life (as a rule, the first is closely related to the second) . In other words, this is a motive to change your life for the better.
However, as a rule, the reasons leading to depression lie in the unconscious and are not realized by the person himself. It is difficult to be objective when trying to independently analyze your own life, admit mistakes, understand your own (often contradictory) beliefs - and without this it is impossible to determine what exactly needs to be changed and where to direct your efforts. That is why, in case of depression, it is recommended to consult a psychologist in a timely manner: with the help of a specialist, it is much easier to discover the causes of your depressed state, find the sources of negative thoughts and, as a result, outline ways out of depression into a new life filled with positive emotions.
Psychoanalytic psychotherapist A.V. Krutkova
Treatment with positive psychotherapy
This direction is designed for short-term work. A specialist helps a person mobilize internal resources and then solve problems independently. This method is often used to solve family problems.
The main principles of work are the principles of hope, counseling and balance. The result of therapy for depression is the expansion of a person’s goal system. In a state of apathy, low mood and a sedentary lifestyle, plans for the near future help a person find new incentives for a full life.
Cognitive-behavioral direction
This direction is similar to the principles of work in NLP (more about the method). A person suffering from depression realizes that some of their beliefs are wrong. It is because of them that he has such a state when there is an internal conflict between what he wants (true values) and what he needs (erroneous, distorted beliefs). When working with a client, a psychologist shows that you need to change your attitude towards the cause of depression - this is the first step towards curing it.
Myth 8. Novopassit is the best cure for depression
“Antidepressants are chemicals, and any chemicals are very harmful. It's better to drink weed. Here “Novopassit” is an excellent natural antidepressant” - this is a fairly common confusion. For some reason, it is customary for us to mix antidepressants, sedatives and tranquilizers together.
The above-mentioned “Novopassit” includes a completely non-herbal sedative, flavored with a dozen assorted herbs, and is more of a tranquilizer than an antidepressant. It will calm you down, but it is unlikely to help with depression.
The only “herbal” antidepressant is Negrustin, which, on the one hand, is ineffective for severe depression, except perhaps due to the “placebo effect”; on the other hand, it acts only after a very long time.
In addition, it has side effects and is not compatible with some other medications, such as most modern antidepressants. That is, even though Negrustin is sold without prescriptions, it is again necessary to consult a doctor.
Myth 4. Antidepressants are dangerous to health
This, I must say, is not entirely a myth. Even modern, fairly humane drugs designed to combat depression can have side effects, although psychiatrists try to choose treatment so as not to aggravate the troubles of their patients.
Most often, antidepressants cause headaches, dizziness, sweating, palpitations, increased sensitivity to light, loss of sexual desire, drowsiness, decreased or, conversely, increased appetite.
Most of all, patients are afraid of the latter. It is believed that taking antidepressants can cause a person to gain excess weight.
But this is also possible with depression itself. Some people fear a loss of sexual desire, but even with depression it is difficult to be a sexual giant.
In addition, side effects disappear immediately after the end of the course of treatment, and depression with its unpleasant symptoms can last for years.
NLP method
The NLP technique allows you to cure depression in the most progressive way. The specialist directs his work to help the patient outline and recognize the real values in his life.
This tactic distinguishes NLP from psychoanalysis. The latter tries to change the patient’s psyche, and NLP only develops positive reference points in it, focusing the patient’s attention on them. NLP – neurolinguistic programming.
With the help of such programming, values and goals are formed in the patient’s life, and then realized by him. A specialist, using neurolinguistic programming, helps him begin to achieve these goals and take care of himself.
Specialists treat using this method, introducing all possible channels of information perception. The patient can remember information by taste, smell, appearance, touch or hearing.
Where does a psychotherapist begin?
Psychotherapy for depression begins with identifying the causes that led to the development of the pathological condition. What methods the specialist will use for treatment will depend on the detected cause.
Most often, the cause is a serious failure in life, the loss of a loved one, position in society, or physical illness accompanied by constant pain.
The first thing in treating depression with psychotherapy is eliminating the constant depressed and anxious state. The specialist gives the patient hope that there is a solution to these problems, and then together with him methodically discovers these solutions.
Art therapy methods for relieving symptoms of depression
A person needs self-realization, otherwise negative emotions accumulate and symptoms of depression may appear.
Various methods of psychotherapy are aimed at working with the cause of this disease. But it is not always so easy to detect. Sometimes you need to spend a lot of time (even more than a year) to finally get to the true cause of this condition. Art therapy methods are used by a psychologist to reduce the symptoms of a disease or at its initial stage. They are applicable in the initial stages of working with a person, for working with adolescents with depression.
Isotherapy
This method is aimed at expressing emotions in a drawing. Reduced emotionality is compensated by drawing. The psychologist looks at what colors are used and what the nature of the shading in the drawing is. It is important to look at what was drawn first and with what pressure.
All these nuances cannot be identified by a simple person, much less analyzed. Therefore, it is important to consult a specialist even at the initial stages of depression.
Fairy tale therapy
Fairy tales are folk art based on life situations.
In fairy tales, heroes experience losses, various adversities, betrayal, and so on. While working through the plot of a fairy tale with a psychologist, a person is left with fear of loneliness, hopelessness and despair, he understands that he is not alone in his problem. The intensity of depressive symptoms decreases.
Sand therapy
It is a non-verbal form of psychocorrection. A person expresses suppressed desires and goals with the help of figures in the sand. By talking through what he built, why exactly, what the figures located in specific places mean to him, a person gradually comes to the realization of what caused him to suffer such a disease.
Depending on what type of depression a person develops, psychotherapeutic methods for overcoming it are selected. Psychoanalysis is effective in treating the underlying causes of illness. Cognitive behavioral therapy is important for a person's adaptation to normal life. Art therapy methods will not eradicate the underlying cause, but will help release repressed emotions.
A psychologist, along with a medical specialist, helps to understand the cause of this condition and change their attitude towards it, and then the person himself continues to fight for a full life.
Psychoanalysis
The help of a psychotherapist begins with analysis. Depression is considered as a depressed emotional state of a person, dulling sensations and emotions, leading to loss of performance and decreased activity. But there is another side to the coin.
A depressive state can return a person to the origins of where he began in life. In other words, a person who is sick of real life tries to start all over again and can succeed greatly in this, since depression is, first of all, a shake-up for the entire state of the body.
The task of the psychiatrist at this stage is to recognize for what reasons and after what push the person began to fall into apathy. Here psychotherapists are faced with a rationalization barrier - the patient subconsciously answers what they want to hear about his inner experiences.
When the true reasons become known, the answer appears to the question of when and where the mistake was made in self-perception and the perception of the world around. Then the question of how to correct this error is decided.
The patient's infancy, childhood and adolescence are subject to the most detailed analysis. During these periods of personality development, the child often receives traumas that take deep roots in the consciousness for life.
If after giving birth the patient's mother developed postpartum depression, it was impossible to establish contact with the child and this subconscious trauma is heavily reflected in the adult life of this child.
In such patients, any mental pathologies are much more severe than in those whose parents did not suffer from postpartum disorders.
