Treatment for Depression

Depression can be debilitating and scary and can affect 6% of the Australian population every year according to Sane Australia. Millions of people all over the world including individuals and their families live with and are affected by depression and are unsure about who to turn to or where or when to access help.

The good news is that depression is preventable and can be treated and the first step to recovery is to recognise the symptoms of depression.

Professional treatment for depression can help you to

• find relief from feelings of depression and anxiety
• discover new tools and techniques to cope with depression
• minimise your negative feelings and symptoms of depression that affect your home, work and social life

Common symptoms of depression

Your depression symptoms may include feeling

• that you no longer enjoy your normal activities
• sad, overwhelmed or miserable
• like you don’t want to be around people
• like you are having trouble getting things done
• tired, exhausted or lethargic
• that you can’t sleep, eat, work or play
• like this for more than two weeks
• you may or may not have thoughts about suicide

How a psychologist can help you to overcome depression

Depending on what your health professional feels is right for you, treatment may include the following techniques:

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

CBT focuses on changing unhelpful thoughts and patterns of behaviour that can negatively affect the way a person feels. A psychologist using this method will help the person with depression to find new ways to think about the depression they are experiencing and different behaviour patterns.

Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)

MBCT combines cognitive behavioural techniques with mindfulness strategies in order to help people to understand and better manage their thoughts and feelings in order to find relief from symptoms of depression. A psychologist using mindfulness techniques helps the person with depression to focus on the present instead of the past where difficult experiences may lay, or the future which may cause the person to feel some anxiety.

Talk Therapy

Talk Therapy and counselling gives the person experiencing depression a safe place to express, explore and process their feelings about what is happening for them. A psychologist, using talk therapy to help with depression, allows the person to feel heard and understood and also to explore the possible origins of their depression.

Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)

EMDR is a treatment often used in the treatment of trauma. EMDR may be a helpful treatment for those people experiencing depression linked to traumatic events. A psychologist using EMDR causes the person’s brain to reprocess the trauma they have experienced, reducing the person’s symptoms of depression.

Clinical Hypnotherapy

Clinical hypnotherapy taps directly into the person’s subconscious mind. A psychologist using clinical hypnotherapy places the person experiencing depression into a deeply relaxed state, this then enables the person to receive positive input from the psychologist that reduces the person’s symptoms of depression.

Depression treatment

Working with a psychologist for depression treatment may help you to

• identify thoughts and patterns of behaviour that are negative and unhelpful
• identify and change any unhelpful problem solving approaches
• recognise patterns of thinking that are not useful
• find skills to address relationship, life or work issues or other problems that may be impacting depression in your life

Vision Counselling and Psychology offers –

• Multiple Perth locations – Scarborough, Rockingham and Midland
• No waiting lists
• After hours counselling appointments

Contact us today to find a psychologist or counsellor and find relief from feelings of depression.

Read our article – Do I need counselling?