Depression – How We Can Help

Do you know that working on depression with a Professional Counselor is one of the best ways to help you get to the other side of depression?  Handling a state of depression by yourself is like using a teaspoon to move the ocean! It’s too overwhelming to do alone. When you avoid getting help because you are afraid of digging under your depression or being afraid of being labeled as mentally ill or weak by others or even yourself , is not being good to yourself! Mental Health Professionals are trained to identify depression and provide interventions.  When you select a therapist, know what their professional credentials are. They should have at least a Master’s Degree and a professional credential to go with it, as well as experience with treating depression. At Sawayer Logistics (sawayer.com) you will be assisted by a seasoned Masters Level, Texas Licensed Professional Counselor, with years of experience in the diagnosis and treatment of depression using non-medical treatment modalities.  If your situation would be helped with medications as well, I will work with you physician in a treatment team approach, if you provide a signed release of information.  Email me at sawayerlogistics@sawayer.com or by calling 833-729-2937 today! Just what qualifies as depression anyway? Take a listen to this TED Talk video on the subject! What is depression? – Helen M. Farrell

https://youtu.be/z-IR48Mb3W0

Depression is not necessarily indicative of having a serious mental illness.  It is a diagnosed condition, which can be serious and affect your ability to focus and be energized in your relationships with family, co-workers, and even your own self –care.  Depression can create feelings of helplessness and thoughts of hopelessness as well as a disinterest in your daily life activities. If those thoughts and feelings become severe, they can lead to thoughts of suicide. Depression can show up in your appetite, through overeating and gaining weight or by undereating and losing weight.  The key to knowing if changes to your eating pattern are related to depression can be answered this way.  Are you INTENTIONALLY trying to gain or lose weight? Another way depression shows up is in your sleep patterns.  Similarly to eating patterns, you can be depressed if you are sleeping more than you normally do, OR, you are unable to fall asleep until you are absolutely exhausted.  The key here again has to do with your control over your sleep.  If you are working swing shifts or if you have been involved in a one-time event that causes you to be sleep deprived, like an unexpected trip to the Emergency Room,  then that is not likely to be related to depression.  However, if you have difficulty sleeping for no particular reason for a week, then depression might be occurring. If you are experiencing frequent mood-swings that occur suddenly and frequently, you may be suffering from a physical ailment that should be checked out by your doctor.  Sometimes, a few lab tests will show some changes in your body chemistry that accounts for mood-swings.  Mood swings can be deceptive because the depression may recede and be replaced by the opposite behavior of hyper-activity.  Often, when these mood swings are occurring you can find yourself becoming easily angered and irritated, which is the opposite of what we believe depression looks like Do you know how medical and psychological testing for depression can help determine if something else is causing your symptoms? Medical and Psychological Testing for depression really helps.  Physicians and therapists base the diagnosis of depression on testing.  This is the only objective way to validate what you are experiencing in your personal thoughts and feelings.  You may be pleasantly surprised with your test results because they give you hope and information that can help both you and your therapist come up with a good treatment plan. Do you realize that depression can also be caused by physical problems? Physician testing also helps with other types of depression that have a basis in how our bodies function.  Sometimes, there is an imbalance in brain chemicals responsible for the transmission of nerve impulses in the brain that create the sensation of depression.  Sometimes, physical body trauma can also lead to other problems such as loss of eyesight, hearing, and memory.  These should be evaluated to see if they play a role in your depression.  For example, I remember when I first began experiencing hearing loss.  This was a physical problem that created severe loss of self-esteem and a feeling of hopelessness.  Eventually, I felt that I was isolated because I was unable to correctly understand what people were saying.  This also led me to seek help and testing which led to hearing aids and a new sense of being valuable.  Did I want to lose my hearing? No, but it happened because of my exposure to loud gunfire training as a police officer.  Was it easy accepting that I had to wear hearing aids in my 30’s? Nope, I believed hearing aids were for old folks.  Decades later, my attitude toward hearing loss is changed and my sense of being isolated has disappeared. Post-Partum Depression: For some women, depression occurs after they deliver a child.  It can be the first child, but it can also be the second and the third, if that happens.  Post-Partum depression is thought to occur because of the changes to the females’ hormonal states during and after pregnancy.  This should be reported to the treating physician immediately. The sudden, new, use of and/or increased use of substances such as alcohol, marijuana, or other drugs that are either prescribed or not-prescribed, in an attempt to change your  depressed feelings and thoughts.  This is dangerous behavior for several reasons.  Substances such as alcohol are actually depressants, so they are counter-productive.  Prescriptive medication misuse, weather your own or someone else’s, is illegal and dangerous. Managing Depression without medications https://youtu.be/0uf4hVy0OCs Do you know the types of life events that can make you more vulnerable? As my friend Dr. B likes to say, “Life is Messy.” In that messiness we can become vulnerable to depression.  For example, things like loneliness and isolation, marital or relationship problems, a recent job loss, the death of a loved one, a financial loss and just the fear of those things happening. Another point of vulnerability for some people is the presence of chronic, long lasting pain and illness.  The source isn’t as important as the fact of the suffering. Genetics has a bearing in some cases.  There is considerable research that shows a family history of severe depression in first line relationships is a risk factor for the development of depression.  This is more in the category of physiological causes than it is from negative life experiences. This can be confusing and lead you to the conclusion, that depression is not the problem when in fact, it could be. Did you know that the type of depression and the cause of that depression will determine the type of treatment that will benefit you the most? If your depression is what I call “situational” or “reactive”, it can be addressed by applying new strategic thinking methods that teach you how to “re-frame” the experience itself into something less devastating and to re-think your self-talk concerning the situation. You can also do practical things to increase your overall health while at the same time getting more control over your life. This is important because by it’s very nature, feelings of depression or being in the state of depression, makes us feel out of control in life. Getting back control can be accomplished by little activities, supported by your counselor. Becoming more physically active on a regular schedule, changing up your diet if you need to get it more balance, getting your weight adjusted in line with your height and suggested body mass, beginning to keep a journal, listening to your favorite music, and doing some volunteer work. If you are suffering from a more serious chronic depression, all of the above can help, but there is very likely a benefit to considering seeing your physician for some anti-depressant medications. Can there be side effects? Yes, sometimes, its trial and error before the right medications at the right doses is achieved. The experience of depression, is the experience of uncomfortable darkness, so lets turn on some lights in your soul!