DEPRESSION

Clinical depression is more than just having a bad day. While feeling sad is part of being human, depression is not. Clinical depression is a highly treatable disorder. It involves a period of at least two weeks where in you feel sad or apathetic more of the time than not. Symptoms of depression include significant problems with sleep (either too much or too little), significant problems with appetite (eat too much or not enough), social withdrawal, inability to derive pleasure from previously enjoyed activities, feelings of hopelessness and helplessness, and, sometimes, thoughts of death or suicide. For some depressed people, especially teens, their mood may be more irritable than sad.

Clinical depression is a highly treatable disorder which has a variety of causes. Some research suggests that there is a possible genetic predisposition for individuals with more serious depressions. It remains unclear how a genetic predisposition would work and it is generally thought of as a "hair trigger" which only takes a little stress to "pull". Once susceptible people have experienced too much distress and the trigger is pulled, the gene or genes somehow reduce the amount of certain neurotransmitter substances (such as serotonin) at certain places in the brain. This then causes the brain to function improperly, resulting in depression. However, other theorists disregard the genetic link and treat depression simply as a cognitive process. Regardless, of how one believes depression is caused we know that for some people medication helps and with other people cognitive or psychodynamic therapy is more effective. Thus, there seems to be many ways to bring on clinical depression and different ways to treat it. It is our belief that any person who is taking anti-depressant medications should also be in counseling.

How does counseling help depressed people? First, counseling helps you to clearly see how depressed moods have interfered with all spheres of your life: social, vocational, academic, physical, emotional, cognitive, familial, and spiritual. This preliminary acceptance of the problem helps to lay out a road map for the treatment to follow. Second, you will begin to look at how you have contributed to your depression. Techniques are practiced which can help you improve the way you feel and act, which will help you feel better. Third, the counselor will help you to search for and understand the dynamics involved, based on your memories of the past and your expectations for the future, which made you vulnerable to depression. This will help insure that you remain free from the shackles of depression. If you are depressed, do not continue to struggle needlessly, call for an appointment.