Depression

What is Depression?

Clinical depression is an illness, a medical condition. It significantly affects the way someone feels, causing a persistent lowering of mood. Depression is often accompanied by a range of other physical and psychological symptoms that can interfere with the way a person is able to function in their everyday life. The symptoms of depression generally react positively to treatment.

What are the symptoms?

Depression has a variety of symptoms and will affect everyone in different ways. Symptoms include: feeling extremely sad or tearful; disturbances to normal sleep patterns; loss of interest and motivation; feeling worthless or guilty; loss of pleasure in activities; anxiety; changes in appetite or weight; loss of sexual interest; physical aches and pains; impaired thinking or concentration.

What causes Depression?

There are a number of possible causes of depression:

• Depression can be a reaction to a distressing situation like loss or stress (reactive depression). Some women experience depression following the birth of a child (post-natal depression).

• Depression can be part of an illness like bipolar disorder in which the person experiences extreme moods without any reason –very high and very-excited or very low and depressed.

• Depression can be unrelated to any outside cause, but associated with a chemical imbalance in the brain (endogenous depression). Sometimes the person may be affected so much that he or she experiences the symptoms of psychosis and is unable to distinguish what is real.

• Children and teenagers can also become depressed. This can show itself in different ways to depression in adults, and they are best helped by a doctor who is a specialist in this area.

How many people develop depression?

Every year, around 6% of all adult Australians are affected by a depressive illness.

How is depression treated?

Treatment can do much to reduce and even eliminate the symptoms of depression. Treatment may include a combination of medication, individual therapy and community support.

• Individual therapy
  A doctor, psychologist or other health professional talks with the person about their symptoms, and discusses alternative ways of thinking about and coping with them.

• Community support programs
  This support should include information; accommodation; help with finding suitable work; training and education; psychosocial rehabilitation and mutual support groups.Under-standing and acceptance by the community is also very important

• Medication
  Certain medications assist the brain to restore its usual chemical balance and help control the symptoms of depression.

Source: Sane Australia www.sane.org

Treating Depression at Sovereignty Counselling

Your clinician at Sovereignty counselling will conduct a thorough assessment and listen to your specific concerns to determine the type and severity of depression you may be experiencing and consider the possible causes of your symptoms. We will then seek to match your specific situation and symptoms with the most effective intervention and determine an individualised treatment plan.

Based on your assessment and treatment plan, your clinician will offer you one or more of the following interventions:

• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

• Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)

• Mindfulness

• Solution-Focused Therapy

• Couples Counselling

• Skills Training

• Drug and Alcohol Counselling

To find out more or to make an appointment, please contact us.