The Depression Helpbook
By Wayne Katon, Evette Ludman and Gregory Simon
()
About this ebook
Recognizing that all depression is differentfrom how severe it is and what the symptoms are to how long it laststhis book explains what causes depression, how to recognize depression, and how to make decisions about treatment. Integrating pharmacologic and psychotherapeutic approaches, it emphasizes self-care strategies that help sufferers of depression develop confidence in their ability to manage depression on a daily basis and achieve balance in their mood and everyday life, reducing the chance of recurrence. Featuring real people's advice on managing depression using simple techniques, this new edition includes updated information on medications for depression and expanded chapters on exercise and relaxation techniques.
Related to The Depression Helpbook
Related ebooks
Living with Bipolar: A Guide to Understanding and Managing the Disorder Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The Small Guide to Depression Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCoping with Bipolar Disorder: A CBT-Informed Guide to Living with Manic Depression Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow to Change Your Thinking About Depression: Hazelden Quick Guides Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Woman's Guide to Overcoming Depression Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Everything Health Guide to Adult Bipolar Disorder: A Reassuring Guide for Patients and Families Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Healing Depression for Life: The Personalized Approach that Offers New Hope for Lasting Relief Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Uncovering Happiness: Overcoming Depression with Mindfulness and Self-Compassion Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Mind of Your Own: The Truth About Depression and How Women Can Heal Their Bodies to Reclaim Their Lives Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Got Bipolar?: An Insider's Guide to Managing Life Effectively Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGetting Your Life Back Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBeyond the Silence Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Bipolar Me Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Beginner's Guide to Losing Your Mind: How to Be "Normal" in Your Twenties with Anxiety and Depression Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Good Grief: Healing Through the Shadow of Loss Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSleep Tight: Bedtime Quotes to Soothe the Soul Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Intact: Untangle the Web of Bipolar Depression, Addiction, and Trauma Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPerfect Chaos: A Daughter's Journey to Survive Bipolar, a Mother's Struggle to Save Her Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hilarious World of Depression Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Irritable Hearts: A PTSD Love Story Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Climbing Out of Depression Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Bipolar Us Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhen You're Not F*cking Fine: A Beginner's Guide to Anxiety, Depression, and Understanding Your Mental Health Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHealing Depression for Life Workbook: The 12-Week Journey to Lifelong Wellness Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Mental Health For You
Decluttering at the Speed of Life: Winning Your Never-Ending Battle with Stuff Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Winning the War in Your Mind: Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Unfuck Your Brain: Using Science to Get Over Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Freak-outs, and Triggers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anxious for Nothing: Finding Calm in a Chaotic World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Manage Your Home Without Losing Your Mind: Dealing with Your House's Dirty Little Secrets Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression – and the Unexpected Solutions Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Less Fret, More Faith: An 11-Week Action Plan to Overcome Anxiety Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The New Codependency: Help and Guidance for Today's Generation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Overwhelmed Brain: Personal Growth for Critical Thinkers Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Organizing for the Rest of Us: 100 Realistic Strategies to Keep Any House Under Control Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why Smart People Hurt: A Guide for the Bright, the Sensitive, and the Creative Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Healing Childhood Trauma: Transforming Pain into Purpose with Post-Traumatic Growth Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beyond Thoughts: An Exploration Of Who We Are Beyond Our Minds Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nobody Wants Your Sh*t: The Art of Decluttering Before You Die Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Be Yourself: Quiet Your Inner Critic and Rise Above Social Anxiety Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Embrace Your Weird: Face Your Fears and Unleash Creativity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Unfuck Your Anxiety: Using Science to Rewire Your Anxious Brain Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Do the Work: The Official Unrepentant, Ass-Kicking, No-Kidding, Change-Your-Life Sidekick to Unfu*k Yourself Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Unfuck Your Brain Workbook: Using Science to Get Over Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Freak-Outs, and Triggers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I Don't Want to Talk About It: Overcoming the Secret Legacy of Male Depression Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The Depression Helpbook
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
The Depression Helpbook - Wayne Katon
track.
Part I
A BETTER UNDERSTANDING
What to Expect in This Section
A better understanding of
• How depression can affect you
• What causes depression
• How to get started on the path to recovery
FACT
Approximately 10% of adults will at some point experience a depressive episode that would benefit from treatment. —Scientific American Medicine
FAMOUS PEOPLE WITH DEPRESSION
Ludwig van Beethoven, Charles Dickens, Patty Duke, Vivian Leigh, Abraham Lincoln, Eugene O’Neill, Virginia Wolf
CHAPTER 1
What Is Depression?
I had been having trouble sleeping and was tired all the time. It was getting harder and harder to keep up with my responsibilities at work because l couldn’t concentrate. I felt people didn’t want to be around me because I was gloomy and irritable. My physical health seemed to have taken a turn for the worse, which had me down in the dumps. So I went to see my doctor. When he asked if I was depressed, it took me completely by surprise.
HOW TO RECOGNIZE DEPRESSION
Depression is a medical condition that is both physical and psychological. The primary symptoms are feelings of sorrow, dejection, despair, or irritability. Most people feel sad or blue occasionally, but when these feelings persist or worsen and begin to interfere with work or personal relationships, depression is suspected.
Learning how to identify depression in its early stages is important. Many people, even those who have been treated for depression in the past, don’t realize that they are depressed (or that they’re slipping back into a depression) until their depression is severe. If you can recognize depression when it first begins to come on, it is often much easier to manage.
Many of the symptoms of depression, such as headache, backache, or stomach trouble, are physical and may come on gradually, so it’s often hard to recognize that depression is developing. A good way to find out is to review the Symptom Checklist For Recognizing Depression (opposite page). If you have been experiencing five or more of the symptoms on this list most of the time, including at least one of the first two symptoms, for at least two weeks, then depression is a likely explanation.
DEPRESSION IS COMMON
You probably know people who have been depressed in the past or several who are struggling with depression right now. Even highly accomplished and famous people experience depression from time to time. Television journalist Mike Wallace, President Abraham Lincoln, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and award-winning author William Styron are just a few of the well-known people who have battled depression.
Even so, when you’re the one who’s depressed, you often feel isolated. You may hesitate to tell others about your depression. Or, feeling that you should be able to overcome this illness on your own, you may wait to seek help until your depression becomes severe. Remember that depression is very common. One out of every four women and nearly one in seven men will suffer from at least one depressive episode sometime during their life.
WHAT CAUSES DEPRESSION?
Experts now believe that depression is due to a combination of biological susceptibility and an accumulation of life stresses. Depression tends to run in families, just like other medical conditions, such as diabetes, asthma, and hypertension, so depression probably has a genetic component, as do these other diseases. People who suffer from depression seem to have inherited a heightened sensitivity to changes in the levels of certain chemicals in the brain.
For some people, no specific event leads to their initial depression. For many others, certain experiences can trigger their first depressive episodes. It may be a painful physical illness or a traumatic event.
Major life stresses, such as divorce or death of a loved one, as well as positive changes like starting a new job, moving to another city, or having a new baby, can reduce the availability of key chemical messengers in the brain. These chemical messengers, called neurotransmitters, regulate sleep, energy, appetite, motivation, mood, and the ability to experience pleasure, to think, and to concentrate. For people who experience repeated episodes of depression, or who feel depressed most of the time, stress is more likely to lead to reductions in the levels of these chemicals.
DEPRESSION IS TREATABLE
When these essential chemical messengers are replenished, depressed people generally start to feel better. One way to restore these brain chemicals is by taking antidepressant medication. Another way is psychotherapy that treats depression by helping patients to improve their relationships with others, develop more constructive ways of thinking, and increase participation in more pleasant and rewarding activities. Psychotherapy is often combined with antidepressant medication.
Some people think they should be able to cope with depression on their own, without medications, psychotherapy, or any kind of outside help. But bear in mind that no one expects people with asthma or diabetes to overcome their illnesses simply by doing a better job of managing stress. The same should be true for depression. As soon as you recognize the problem, it makes sense to get help.
For people who experience repeated episodes of depression, long-term use of prescription antidepressant medicine can help prevent severe recurrences of the disease. Making the decision to use medication to combat depression is not a sign of weakness. Many people find that long-term use of antidepressants helps them feel and cope better day to day and prevents recurrences of severe depression. Taking medication may be an important part of your self-care and a sign that you are willing to do what works for you.
EVERYBODY’S DEPRESSION IS DIFFERENT
Each person who experiences depression is different, so it’s not surprising that people with depression don’t all experience it in the same way. The symptoms that bother you the most may not be so troubling for someone else.
People also differ in the circumstances that bring on depression. Sometimes depression occurs after a sudden stressful event such as a failed love affair, an illness, the loss of a job, or the death of someone close. Even positive events like getting a promotion can bring on depression.
Depression can result from long-term pressures: a difficult marriage, a stressful job, or a chronic illness. In some cases, depression comes on after what seems like a minor event, or even for no reason at all.
Chuck’s story:
I started getting depressed around age 12. I missed 20 to 30 days of school a semester from junior high through high school. But I didn’t realize what was wrong, so I didn’t start getting help until I was 30 years old. I didn’t want to admit I needed help. I wanted to do it myself.
Janet’s story:
I was kind of relieved when the doctor said my problem was depression because I thought something was really wrong. Depression affects my colon, my gut—and that worried me because my dad died of cancer and I have lots of cancer in my family. But when I thought about what the doctor said, I realized that, yes, I am depressed.
Stanley’s story:
Everything was going wrong. I was under a lot of stress. My shoulders started aching, and I got muscle spasms across my back. There was no reason for it. I’m usually very positive, but I wasn’t being rational. I noticed I wasn’t getting things done.
Types Of Depression
Depressions also differ in how severe they are, how long they last, and what the symptoms are. Each type of depression belongs to a specific category. Knowing the category helps guide medical professionals in recommending the right treatment.
Major depression consists of at least 5 symptoms on the checklist at the beginning of this chapter, such as sleep problems or feeling worthless, for 2 or more weeks.
Minor depression includes some depressive symptoms, but not enough to count as major depression. Sometimes minor depression continues after the worst part of a major depressive episode has passed.
Dysthymia is what mental health professionals call a chronic depression, involving just a few symptoms that may last for 2 years or longer. People with dysthymia often report that they have struggled with depressive moods for most of their lives.
Doctors used to believe there was a difference between reactive or situational depression and endogenous or biological depression. Now we know that there’s not really a difference when it comes to what helps. Treatments for depression, either medication or psychotherapy, can both be helpful whether or not depression is related to some stressful life event.
Manic depression (also called manic-depressive illness or bipolar disorder) is a rarer form in which people suffer periods of major depression alternating with periods of euphoria and high energy. During the phases of highs,
people who are manic depressive experience euphoria, extraordinary vigor, and increased talkativeness and sociability and racing thoughts. They may also spend money extravagantly, be sexually promiscuous, and feel exceptionally powerful or creative. Manic depression requires different kinds of treatment from those described in this book.
Consult the Resource Guide at the back of this book for sources of further information on manic depression.
HOW LONG WILL MY DEPRESSION LAST?
Don’t delay getting help for depression because you hope it will go away on its own. Left untreated, a major depressive episode usually lasts 6-9 months, although 1 out of 3 depressed people do feel better after about 3 months, even without treatment.
Both antidepressant medications and the specific psychotherapies described in this book speed up the time to recovery. With medication, most people improve significantly in 2-4 weeks, and with psychotherapy, in 6-8 weeks. It is important to continue taking your antidepressant and attending psychotherapy sessions for as long as your doctor thinks necessary, even though you are feeling much better.
What If I Am Prone To Chronic Depression?
Controlling depression may be more difficult for people who are particularly vulnerable because of their genetic makeup or their childhood experiences. The tools described in this book (including antidepressant medications, developing more constructive ways of thinking, increasing positive activities, and improving interactions with others) can help anyone struggling to manage depression.
CHAPTER 2
Reversing the Downward
Spiral of Depression
About 6 weeks ago l got into a terrible accident. Afterward, my neck and back were really stiff and always hurting, and I couldn’t sleep. I was really tired and couldn’t concentrate on my work. I could tell that my boss was getting ticked off, but he didn’t come out and say so. I avoided him any chance I could get. I used to play soccer after work, but now I would just go home and collapse on the couch. I was getting really irritable with my wife and kids, and then my wife got upset because I wasn’t pulling my weight around the house. That’s when I started to feel really down. My life was spinning out of control, and I didn’t seem able to do anything about it.