Clinical depression is a condition caused by chemical imbalances in the brain that make a person constantly feel aloof, negative, sad, and unmotivated. Depression can last for weeks, months, or even years. It can result from stress, certain situations, or triggered by nothing at all. Depression can affect people of any age, including teens and young children.

Young people frequently suffer from depressive disorders, which leaves parents with questions such as: what causes it, and what treatments are available? The good news is that depression is treatable and some of the most effective depression treatments come in the form of Neuro-Linguistic Programming techniques.

In the past, it was thought that younger people could not experience depression, but in reality, depression affects people of all ages. Often, depression in children and teens is triggered by events such as a relationship breakup, illness, a loss in the family, changing schools, or abuse. In some people, depression has no external cause. Depression often runs in families, meaning mothers and fathers with depression are more likely to have offspring who also suffer from depression.

There are many different forms of depression. Most children with depression have a type of major depression. This form obstructs a person’s ability to enjoy life and engage in normal activities. Some children and teens may also suffer from a milder type of depression called Dysthymic Disorder, which is a long-term type of depression with less severe symptoms than major depression. A rarer but still common type of depression is manic-depression (bipolar disorder), which is characterized by mood shifts from extreme happiness to extreme sadness.

Depression can be a problem for young people because their symptoms vary slightly from the ones adults frequently display, making it more challenging to diagnose and treat. Often, children and teens with depression will not feel sad or “depressed” as one would find in adults. Constant irritability is typically one of the biggest signs of depression in children and teens. Signs of depression may not be obvious, but may include difficulty concentrating and difficulty sleeping, exhaustion, and decreased interest in activities.

Children with depression may do poorly in school, have problems making friends, or have disciplinary problems. The effects are also pronounced for teens, who may abuse alcohol and drugs to escape their depression. Depressive disorder is no one’s fault, but those with depression do have the power to get treatment and find out how to handle their depression.

Depression treatments can range from counseling and therapy, to the use of antidepressant drugs. Group psychotherapy can be helpful for teenagers and children by providing a safe place to share their experience with others. Online services such as forums for depressed teens can also provide a source of information for teen depression and serve as a therapy group for the depressed.

Behavioral counseling can help teach people how to manage their depression. Counselors can help parents understand what causes a child’s depression. Family counseling helps educate parents on why their child has depression and what they can do to help.

In some cases, antidepressant medications are prescribed. This is only done under the supervision of a physician who will monitor the child’s health and mental state. Even though people with severe depression may have a need for antidepressants, these drugs can have undesirable side effects, especially in young people, who are still developing. This is why counseling, understanding and support from parents and professional therapists, and the use of techniques that help young people learn how to cope with their depression by themselves are considered better for helping children with depression.

Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) practices can be used to relieve anxiety, tension, and depression. They help people form safe and constructive coping mechanisms for reducing depression. It works for all people because it is non-invasive, does not require the use of any drugs, and is an effective form of self-therapy.

One NLP technique used to alleviate depression is the NLP Flash. This technique reprograms your unconscious mind to use the feelings that create stress and depression as triggers for thoughts that eliminate depression instead. It is a technique that even young people can learn to use to help them reduce their depression.

People with depression need not suffer. Therapeutic techniques can help depressed people of all ages find relief. NLP techniques are excellent for helping children and their families cope with stress and depression. These techniques can reduce or even eliminate depression in people of all ages.



Thanks to Alan Densky for contributing this article to our Depression blog:

Bipolar Depression Medication

Depression is a very real and treatable illness. Depression is just about the loneliest experience in the world. Depressed people, who are often poor communicators place more demands on a marriage with their greater need for caring and support and end up in unhappier marriages. Depression affects teenagers, pensioners and everyone in between; married people, single people, rich and poor. clinical depression affects 15% of the population, and a third of all women. Sometimes people become depressed for what seems like a good reason - maybe they lost their job or a close friend passed away - but with clinical depression there doesn’t necessarily have to be a reason for how you feel. Depressive disorders come in different forms, just as is the case with other illnesses such as heart disease. Major depression is manifested by a combination of symptoms (see symptom list) that interfere with the ability to work, study, sleep, eat, and enjoy once pleasurable activities. Such a disabling episode of depression may occur only once but more commonly occurs several times in a lifetime. A less severe type of depression, dysthymia, involves long-term, chronic symptoms that do not disable, but keep one from functioning well or from feeling good.

Depression can coexist with other illnesses. Seasonal affective disorder may point to an atavistic link with behaviour in hibernation. In some families, depressive disorders seem to occur generation after generation; however, they can also occur in people with no family history of these illnesses. Many people with dysthymia also experience major depressive episodes at some time in their lives. Depression has been found to occur at a higher rate among people who have other serious illnesses such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, HIV, diabetes, and Parkinson’s. Depression can increase the risks for developing coronary artery disease, HIV, asthma, and some other medical illnesses. Many people just don’t realize that depression can cause so many problems or so much pain. Another type of depression is bipolar disorder, also called manic-depressive illness. Not nearly as prevalent as other forms of depressive disorders, bipolar disorder is characterized by cycling mood changes: severe highs (mania) and lows (depression). Furthermore, it can increase the morbidity (illness) and mortality (death) from these conditions. Teens who were confused about their orientation were also more prone to suicide. Among these teens, boys were 3.4 times more likely and girls were 2.5 times more likely than teens to attempt suicide at least once in the past year.

Depression may occur only once in a person’s life. Social conditions like poverty, homelessness, and community violence can make it more likely for people to become depressed. Two hallmarks of depression — symptoms key to establishing are Loss of interest in normal daily activities. Depressed mood. You feel sad, helpless or hopeless, and may have crying spells. Depression symptoms are characterized not only by negative thoughts, moods, and behaviors, but also by specific changes in bodily functions (for example, irregular eating, sleeping, crying spells, and decreased libido). Sometimes the mood switches are dramatic and rapid, but most often they are gradual. Other symptoms of other psychological problems, such as anxiety, panic attacks, obsessions or phobias, which mask the depression. Women experience depression about twice as often as men.1 Many hormonal factors may contribute to the increased rate of depression in women particularly such factors as menstrual cycle changes, pregnancy, miscarriage, postpartum period, pre-menopause, and menopause. Treatment may also include psychotherapy, which may help you cope with ongoing problems that may trigger or contribute to depression. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, such as fluoxetine (Prozac, Sarafem), paroxetine (Paxil), sertraline (Zoloft), citalopram (Celexa) and escitalopram (Lexapro), as the first-line treatment for depression because they have fewer serious side effects.



Thanks to Juliet Cohen for contributing this article to our Depression blog:

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Can you answer Wicked Bad Nonsense’s question about Depression?:

Can someone tell me what the possible side effects could be if a person drinks too much alcohol while taking antidepressants? Is there be a change in mood or mental state?

Why Am I Depressed

Depression is the number one mental disorder in the western world with an ever increasing number of patients. Luckily there are many different types of depression medication and other treatments for depression available nowadays that are effective and allow for an alleviation or even cure of depression. Among the treatments for depression prescription anti depressants are by far the ones most commonly used. Given a broad lack of knowledge among many depressed patients about what these drugs actually do and what to expect when one takes them a review of those types of depression medication is well warranted. In principle one can distinguish four types of depression medication, though a few medicinal prescription treatments for depression do not directly fall into one of the four categories: Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), Tricyclics Antidepressants (TCAs), Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOIs), and Serotonin/Norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs).

All of those types of depression medication have many commonalities with regards to their mode of action. They all work by increasing the level of neurotransmitters in the brain. MAOIs do this by inhibiting the enzymatic breakdown of neurotransmitters serotonin and norepinephrine trough monoamine oxidase; TCAs prevent the uptake of various neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin and norepinephrine; and SSRIs and SNRIs, as their name implies, selectively prevent the reuptake of specific neurotransmitters. Also, all mentioned treatments for depression may have serious side effects, although these side effects vary depending on the kind of anti depressant used. Furthermore, all types of depression medication start to have a positive effect on the depressed patient only after a treatment period of several days to weeks. They also need to be taken consistently over months and sometimes years before drug levels may be reduced or the drugs may not be needed any more by the patient. While the effect of anti depressants on neurotransmitter levels is well documented, how they actually work to lower depression is not definitely known. Some theories claim that the excessive levels of neurotransmitters induced by anti depressants over time lead to a down-regulation of neurotransmitter-receptors, which has a positive effect. Others believe that anti depressants also have positive longer term effects such as neurogenesis or altered gene expression patterns. Whatever the exact causes of the anti depressive effect of these types of depression treatment, they obviously work in many, though certainly not all, cases of depression as has been demonstrated in various clinical studies. Consequently, together with psychotherapy, anti depressants are the treatments for depression of choice for most medical professionals. Unfortunately all named types of depression medication are also known to produce tolerance, leading to the need to increase dosage or to switch to another depression treatment. In addition withdrawal effects are often seen when the patient is taken off medication, leading to a long-term dependence on the drugs used.

All in all the classic types of depression medication certainly have their merits. On the other hand due to the possibility of side effects, the induction of tolerance and the potential danger of establishing dependency on the drugs these treatments of depression should not be taken lightly and in no case without guidance and supervision from a medical professional. Also, the depressed patient should generally work on bettering her condition besides through taking drugs. A healthy nutrition, potentially including nutritional supplements, sports and outdoor activities as well as mental training, such as meditation are all supportive treatments for depression that should be applied to help the depressed patient fight against depression.



Thanks to Alex Matis for contributing this article to our Depression blog:

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Can you answer smoothiemaker’s question about Depression?:

How does a person get diagnosed with clinical depression?

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