Depression treatment and drug treatment are natural complements to one another. Addiction is at root a psychological disease, after all, and addiction recovery has to entail substantive psychological healing. An addict suffering from depression can’t get sober without meaningful, effective depression treatment. That’s simply not the way recovery works.

The good news is that the best drug treatment centers employ dual diagnosis techniques to address the emotional and psychological needs of their clients. With so much to lose, and so much more to win, you can’t afford to settle for anything less. Drug rehabilitation complemented by depression treatment will help you rediscover the world as you used to know it, and yourself as you used to be. But healing has to start with you. Addiction treatment facilities don’t work miracles. No one can get better for you. No one can help you if you refuse to be helped. The day you enroll in a drug treatment program will quite literally be the first day of the rest of your life. You owe it to yourself to find that out on your own terms.

Depression will kill you, if you let it. That might sound melodramatic, but it’s the truth. Even if untreated clinical depression

doesn’t leave you physically dead, it will certainly kill off anything that might possibly be called your spirit. Depression strips its victims of their capacity for hope, and for joy, and turns them into strangers to themselves and the world. It is, simply stated, not the sort of disease that can be “lived with”…and it certainly isn’t a condition that will go away on its own. On the contrary, if you’re going to get better, it’s going to be because you get professional depression treatment from competent medical experts. In the end, nothing you do will ever be more important.

It’s important to note too that depression

is often the root cause of drug and alcohol addiction, and that drug and alcohol rehab programs must include intensive depression treatment where appropriate. If you’re an addict suffering from depression, you haven’t been “cured” in any meaningful sense until your psychological health has been thoroughly addressed. The best drug and alcohol treatment programs, then, are those that employ dual diagnosis techniques to identify and ameliorate a patient’s mental health issues. With so much at stake, you can’t afford to settle for anything less than that.

Depression treatment is a necessity, not a luxury. Depression is a devastating disease, one that turns its victims into shells of their former selves. The good news is that the right depression treatment program really can make a difference. The only catch is that a depression victim has to be the one to take the first step. If you or someone you care about is a depression sufferer, you can’t afford not to act. You already know what’s at stake here. Now you know what you can do about it. All that remains is for you to make the right choice.

It also bears noting here that depression treatment is often a crucial element of the drug rehabilitation process. Drug addiction is in large part a psychological disease, after all, and the best drug treatment programs are those which employ dual diagnosis techniques in assessing a patient’s mental health. If you’re going to get better in an addiction treatment center, it’s going to be from the inside-out. If you’re a victim of depression, that sort of healing has to start with depression treatment. Anything less simply isn’t good enough.

Depression never just goes away. Too many depression victims try to ride out the dark times, on the mistaken assumption that the horizon is bound to get brighter sooner or later. Unfortunately, that’s not the way it works. On the contrary, depression is a disease, and like all diseases it can’t be eradicated without proper clinical care. You’d never expect to beat cancer without cancer treatment. Depression treatment is no less essential. Given the stakes, it’s well past time you found that out for yourself.

The good news in all this is that the right depression treatment program can make a world of difference. The only catch is that you have to seek care. Remember, a depression treatment facility can’t help a patient who won’t walk through the front door. If you want to get better, you can. If you resolve to get the help you need, you will. Your future, in other words, is in your hands. Here’s hoping you have the strength to mold it into something good.

Hello, and Welcome!

Depression treatment can only work if it’s intimate in scope. Depression never impacts any two individuals in quite the same way, after all. On the contrary, every depression victim is unique…and every depression treatment program has to recognize as much. Depression treatment can only succeed insofar as it helps you get healed on your own terms. In the end, anything less than the most personal care simply isn’t good enough.

The practical implication here is that depression treatment can’t be an assembly-line operation. The depression treatment center that’s right for you is the one that evaluates your individual needs, and constructs a care program accordingly. Make no mistake, depression recovery will change your life. The only catch is that it has to be done right. For your own sake, don’t wait another day to find a treatment center that can help you get where you need to go.

In any given 1-year period, 9.5 percent of the population, or about 20.9 million American adults, suffer from a depressive illness. The economic cost for this disorder is high, but the cost in human suffering cannot be estimated. Depressive illnesses often interfere with normal functioning and cause pain and suffering not only to those who have a disorder, but also to those who care about them. Serious depression can destroy family life as well as the life of the ill person. But much of this suffering is unnecessary.

Most people with a depressive illness do not seek treatment, although the great majority even those whose depression is extremely severe can be helped. Thanks to years of fruitful research, there are now medications and psychosocial therapies such as cognitive/behavioral, “talk” or interpersonal that ease the pain of depression.

Depressive disorders come in different forms, just as is the case with other illnesses such as heart disease. This pamphlet briefly describes three of the most common types of depressive disorders. However, within these types there are variations in the number of symptoms, their severity, and persistence.

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. Many people with dysthymia also experience major depressive episodes at some time in their lives.

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). Sometimes the mood switches are dramatic and rapid, but most often they are gradual. When in the depressed cycle, an individual can have any or all of the symptoms of a depressive disorder. When in the manic cycle, the individual may be overactive, overtalkative, and have a great deal of energy. Mania often affects thinking, judgment, and social behavior in ways that cause serious problems and embarrassment. For example, the individual in a manic phase may feel elated, full of grand schemes that might range from unwise business decisions to romantic sprees. Mania, left untreated, may worsen to a psychotic state.

Not everyone who is depressed or manic experiences every symptom. Some people experience a few symptoms, some many. Severity of symptoms varies with individuals and also varies over time.

Depression

* Persistent sad, anxious, or “empty” mood
* Feelings of hopelessness, pessimism
* Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, helplessness
* Loss of interest or pleasure in hobbies and activities that were once enjoyed, including sex
* Decreased energy, fatigue, being “slowed down”
* Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions
* Insomnia, early-morning awakening, or oversleeping
* Appetite and/or weight loss or overeating and weight gain
* Thoughts of death or suicide; suicide attempts
* Restlessness, irritability
* Persistent physical symptoms that do not respond to treatment, such as headaches, digestive disorders, and chronic pain

Mania

* Abnormal or excessive elation
* Unusual irritability
* Decreased need for sleep
* Grandiose notions
* Increased talking
* Racing thoughts
* Increased sexual desire
* Markedly increased energy
* Poor judgment

Inappropriate social behavior

Many forms of psychotherapy, including some short-term (10-20 week) therapies at residential treatment facilities, can help depressed individuals. “Talkingâ€? therapies help patients gain insight into and resolve their problems through verbal exchange with the therapist, sometimes combined with “homeworkâ€? assignments between sessions. “Behavioral” therapists help patients learn how to obtain more satisfaction and rewards through their own actions and how to unlearn the behavioral patterns that contribute to or result from their depression.

Two of the short-term psychotherapies that research has shown helpful for some forms of depression are interpersonal and cognitive/behavioral therapies. Interpersonal therapists focus on the patient’s disturbed personal relationships that both cause and exacerbate (or increase) the depression. Cognitive/behavioral therapists help patients change the negative styles of thinking and behaving often associated with depression.

Psychodynamic therapies, which are sometimes used to treat depressed persons, focus on resolving the patient’s conflicted feelings. These therapies are often reserved until the depressive symptoms are significantly improved. In general, severe depressive illnesses, particularly those that are recurrent, will require medication (or ECT under special conditions) along with, or preceding, psychotherapy for the best outcome.