Pathology of Depression
One of the most common illnesses in the 21st century but also one of the least understood, depression is like the story of the blind men feeling their way round an elephant, each will interpret something different because they can't see the whole picture.
Some physicians see it as a biochemical imbalance which just happens; others believe its errors in thinking. Whatever the exact cause, one can look at it as what we tell ourselves and interpret in a situation without feedback or input from others, changes the biochemical balance of the brain.
It's a chicken and egg situation, as there is a correlation between the two but no real understanding which comes first. When we're feeling low, we are not producing any of the positive neurotransmitters such as seratonin and dopamine. Unfortunately we can't just pop a pill and hey presto we're happy again. Anti-depressants for example just slow the reabsorption of our natural seratonin back into our bodies, but we must have some flowing around our systems to start with.
Therapists today who have been trained with clinical methods in mind look at how the brain works and how we can manipulate it for our own good. As the brain does not know the difference between real and imagined, we can use this to our advantage. The work of Seligman and Richardson shows that changing the way we think can override the natural response, but here's what a lot of people struggle with - it takes time. It's not an instant magic wand. If you want to learn to play the piano you have to practice, if you want to be free of depression you need to practice. It also helps if you have regular aerobic exercise as this can help activate growt of neurons in the brain, which helps enormously - See the work of John Ratey in his book "The Spark" fr more information.
Hypnotherapy, CBT and mindfulness are all useful tools and effective treatments of depression. If you decide that medication is not for you (and the jury is out on how effective medication is for mild forms of depression - see Newsweek Feb 2010) then please call for a FREE consultation. Of course when we're feeling low we tend to focus on that, if we start to look at what makes us feel better, we can make choices to do more of that, it will help shift our moods.
Also see: Symptoms of Depression
