Depression is a serious medical condition that affects the mood. It is a mood disorder that has the potential to affect everyone: male, female, young and old. On the bright side, there are multiple treatments available. Most often healthcare professionals prescribe medical treatments such as antidepressants or psychotherapy. These are not your only options. Many alternative treatments for depression exist. Depression’s alternative treatments include; light therapy, massage therapy, acupuncture, homeopathic treatments, folic acid treatments etc. in this article, you will be provided with an explanation of the term “alternative” in context to depression treatments. You will also be exposed to different types of alternative depression treatments. Even if this article will provide you with an insight on alternative remedies for depression, it is strongly recommended to consult with an expert before engaging in any treatment.
Depression is considered a mental illness that that can manifest itself at any moment in one’s life: Whether during childhood, adolescence, adulthood, during stressful times or even during pregnancy or post-pregnancy. Millions of people each year are diagnosed with depression and seek treatment. Conventional medical treatment such as medication and therapy (psychotherapy, Interpersonal Psychotherapy, etc) are considered the most popular treatments. On the other hand, alternative treatments for depression are becoming more and more prevalent. An explanation of what is considered an “alternative” treatment will help you understand the available alternative depression treatments. A brief description of all these treatments will also help you choose the treatment that is best for you or a loved one. Although this site will provide you with a great amount of information, always keep in mind that a consultation with a healthcare professional is imperative before starting any treatment.
WHAT IS AN ALTERNATIVE TREATMENT?
The word alternative in this context refers to an unconventional option to what is considered mainstream in the western society: a method that is not part of the standard medical system. In this day and age, we live in a world that is much medicalized. When referring to alternative treatments for depression, or alternative remedies for depression, it encompasses all treatments that do not solely rely on medication as part of the treatment. This involves a very broad array of possibilities made available to treat depression. In this article, you will find the alternative depression treatments that are the most used, those that have the highest success rate, as well as treatments that don’t work.
LIGHT THERAPY:
Most commonly associated with seasonal affective disorder, this alternative treatment for depression has also been proven to work with major (non-seasonal) depression as well as with bipolar disorder.
Light therapy has been proven to help relieve the symptoms associated with seasonal affective disorder (type of depression that is caused by lack of light, usually in the winter). More recently, studies show that this alternative treatment for depression is as efficient in regards to other types of depression such as:
- Major depression
- Chronic Depression
- Ante-partum depression (depression during pregnancy)
- Post-partum depression
In all of these cases, patients using light therapy have been found to respond as well to light therapy as those suffering from SAD (seasonal affective disorder). In fact, in a study comparing the effects of antidepressants versus the effects of light therapy on 100 subjects, results showed an equal improvement of the symptoms using both treatments. In addition, this study not only proves the efficiency of light therapy, but it also concluded that light therapy showed faster results:
- Improvement of the symptoms with light therapy was seen after only 1 week of treatments.
- Improvement of the symptoms (at equal level) with administration of antidepressants was seen after 8 weeks of treatment.
In regards to bipolar disorder, cautious treatments have been proven to be positive. Since bipolar disorder is composed of two phases (depressive and manic) the use of light therapy as an alternative treatment must be used differently and responsibly. The dosage and timing is tremendously important, since too much light may provoke mania. Research on a small sample, has demonstrated that morning use of light therapy increased manic states which translated into mixed episodes (manic and depressive at the same time) while the use of midday light therapy was more efficient.
HOMEOPATHIC AND NATURAL ALTERNATIVE REMEDIES FOR DEPRESSION:
Table 07-01: Alternative treatments depression by effect.
|
TREATMENT |
GOOD FOR |
EFFECTIVE AFTER (time period) |
COMPARED TO ANTIDEPRESSANTS |
SIDE EFFECTS |
|
| St-John’s wort (herb) | Mild to moderate depression | 4-6 weeks | As effective | Dizziness, dry mouth, indigestion, fatigue | |
| OMEGA-3(fish, fish oil capsules) | Clinical depression, postpartum depression | N/A | N/A. Very effective when used together | Indigestion, bleeding | |
| FOLIC ACID | All types of depression | N/A | Is used as an aid to antidepressants. Improve effects of antidepressants | N/A | |
| Sam-e (over the counter supplement) | Clinical, post-partum, major depression | Depends on people: as early as one week | Similar success rate when properly dosed | Nausea, constipation | |
| acupuncture | Mild depression | Immediate effect but does not last | N/A | none | |
| exercise | Mild to moderate depressionpost-partum depression | Immediate but does not last | N/A | none | |
| HTP-5 | Mild to moderate depression | Although popular it has not been proven to work | N/A | Should never be taken with antidepressants | |
MASSAGE THERAPY:
People diagnosed with depression are often afflicted with anxiety. For many of these people, massage therapy can be helpful in relieving the stress that can cause depression. Massage therapy has been proven to reduce levels of cortisol (stress hormones). In fact, in a study with a sample of 500 subjects; the results were positive regarding the effect of massage therapy. Moreover, in 53% of the cases the levels of cortisol were significantly lower after a session of massage therapy. Other research endeavours have had similar results. For example, in a research involving pregnant women all diagnosed with depression, they compared a group of women who were treated with interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) to a group of women who combined IPT with massage therapy (1 massage session of 20 minutes/week). The results were very positive: women who combined both therapies had a significant decrease of the symptoms associated with depression.
Although massage therapy is not considered an alternative cure for depression, it does help relieve symptoms as well as lowering the cortisol levels.
Even if these alternative treatments for depression are not medical in nature, some of them do have side effects. It is always recommended to seek the advice of a professional before starting any treatment. Furthermore, some of these treatments are proven to be beneficial when combined with other treatments, while others can be detrimental to your health. As a result, it is your responsibility to inform yourself on which treatment will suit your situation.