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Drug-free treatment for depression
It’s staggering to find that depression affects around 300 million people! With one third of them not responding to treatment, it’s comforting to learn that many are now finding relief without prescription drugs.
These methods have been scientifically proven to help ease symptoms and here’s what the research recommends:
Exercise
One of the most-studied natural approaches to treating depression, regular physical activity has been seen to lift the mood by increasing certain neurotransmitters. Of course, embracing an exercise habit isn’t always easy for people with depression – the last thing you want to do is move when you’re feeling down – however, any physical activity, whatever the description, be it housework, sex, running or even walking to the shops, will have a striking effect on serotonin levels to help lift the mood.
Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy
CBT, a type of talking therapy, focuses on changing negative thought patterns, so learning how to home in on specific problems and then finding new ways to approach them. Typically lasting 10 to 20 sessions to see the full benefit, studies have shown CBT to be as effective as medication.
Behavioural-Activation Therapy
People with depression often withdraw from the world, and this therapy seeks to bring them back in. Treatment involves helping people identify activities that add meaning to their life, such as reading, volunteering, or going out with friends, encouraging them to do these things without first waiting for the mood to lift. In a recent study published by The Lancet, BAT was shown to be as effective as CBT, but costing much less, as practitioners did not require the same level of training.
Mindfulness Training
Negative thoughts and unwanted images are often the source of much sadness and fear, and if you have no training on how to get your attention away from them, you’ll feel even more helpless. Wellness sessions, over a period of weeks, in small groups, focusing on mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, can train people to become more aware of the present moment through practices such as yoga breathing and daily meditation. By working with, and so changing, the brain’s plasticity in those with recurrent depression, a 2016 psychiatry study shows people avoiding relapses better than when on antidepressants.
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
In TMS, a large magnetic coil is held against the scalp near the part of the brain believed to be important for mood. Magnetic pulses painlessly pass through the skull to stimulate nerve cells and, though how it works is still a mystery, it’s thought to help normalise brain circuits involved in depression. TMS is not invasive and people receive it while fully awake. Not to be confused with the horror of electric shock therapy used to treat various forms of mental illness, TMS is useful for those with major depression who haven’t responded to at least one antidepressant. It requires several sessions per week for up to four to six weeks and has shown to have few serious side effects.