Psychotherapy for depression: approaches, treatment methods, advice from a psychotherapist

11/09/20195 minutes read 1032

When a person, for one reason or another, needs help in solving certain problems and, as a result, improving his life, it is time to turn to a certified psychologist. If you have come to the conclusion that you can no longer do without treatment and help, but do not know who to choose for depression - a psychologist, psychotherapist or psychiatrist, it will not hurt you to know the differences between these concepts.

Mental health professionals provide conversations in a safe environment where you can relax and work through your difficulties. This article should help you clarify the differences between a psychiatrist, psychotherapist, psychologist, and other specialists in the field of behavioral health in general and depression in particular.

Who to choose when treating depression: a psychotherapist, a psychologist or a psychiatrist?

This is not an easy task, but we hasten to please you that it is completely doable.

A good psychiatrist or psychotherapist will make sure to find appropriate therapy, including medical therapy and realistic ways to deal with everyday worries.

How do psychologists treat depression? Psychologists treating depression, including clinical psychologists, provide counseling services during which you can express your feelings and thoughts.

Many people are depressed when faced with mental difficulties. Finding a good specialist who will identify the essence of the problem can confuse you and aggravate your anxiety.

Many psychologists who treat depression are trained and practice cognitive behavioral therapy when working with depression. This is a direction of behavioral therapy aimed at actively searching for and correcting the situation, in which a person learns ways to fix thought patterns with a negative connotation and redirect them in a constructive direction.

Advice If you are faced with a choice of whom to turn to for depression - a psychologist or a psychotherapist, choose a psychotherapist who practices cognitive behavioral therapy or a psychologist with the appropriate qualifications.

Thus, the task of a psychologist or psychotherapist, who to choose for depression, will come down to choosing a psychologist who practices the method of therapy you need.

Common issues addressed by psychologists, psychotherapists and psychiatrists

Anger management
Eating disorder
Treatment of depression
Stress management
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (obsessive-compulsive disorder)
Help with sexual disorders

With the help of a good therapist, the pain associated with the problems listed above will ease and other problems, including depression, anxiety and stress, will become manageable. Without the services of an adequate therapist, it is very difficult to learn to manage your thoughts and feelings in order to quickly change your life for the better.

At an appointment with a good psychologist, you will learn step by step to understand the essence of the therapeutic process. When looking for a psychologist, study the information in which technique a particular specialist works. Make sure you have a graduate degree in psychology.

Start working with a psychologist right now

Start a consultation

Symptoms of depression

In medicine, a triad of symptoms has been defined, which is the main one when depression occurs as a disease:

Worsening mood
Decreased activity of the musculoskeletal system
Inhibition of thought processes.

The first aspect is often characterized as melancholy, a feeling of hopelessness, a feeling as if a person is losing bright prospects for his future life. Increased levels of anxiety are often observed, alternatively known as anxious depression. It seems that the meaning of life has been lost, old hobbies and interests lose their meaning and do not bring any satisfaction. Self-esteem suffers. First of all, the patient begins to blame himself for all the “deadly sins.” Suicidal thoughts may appear, and there is less and less contact with other members of society. With the development of neurotic depression, as a rule, the situation develops in the opposite way: they begin to blame the people around them for all the troubles.

With the development of a complex and prolonged depressive state, a person may lose emotional sensitivity. He may feel some emptiness inside. Some patients experience an association with unbearable physical pain. Throughout the day, sensations can fluctuate significantly. If an endogenous type of disease develops, then the peak of negative emotions occurs in the first half of the day or very early morning, and in the afternoon the situation changes dramatically, since well-being improves significantly. Psychogenic depression, on the contrary, assumes a normal emotional background in the first half of the day, and the closer to the evening, the stronger the depressive state manifests itself.

Due to the fact that thought processes are seriously slowed down, a person may have difficulty planning his own day, the learning process is difficult, and solving standard problems requires maximum effort. Perception deteriorates, information is practically not remembered. According to the patients themselves, they begin to feel slower in their actions; in order to carry out a mental operation, a large amount of effort is required. The disease also negatively affects the formation of speech: the patient increasingly arrives in silence and practically does not conduct dialogues. As a rule, the answers are monosyllabic “yes” or “no”.

What is the essence of cognitive behavioral psychotherapy?

Cognitive behavioral therapy is a method of teaching people to change behavior by systematically introducing new positive habits. When using this method of treating depression, the effectiveness of therapy by cognitive behavioral psychotherapists is not in doubt, and is currently the “gold standard” of psychotherapy.

With its help, rational emotional support is provided, the brain is trained, and gets used to new forms of behavior. Talk therapy sessions with a psychotherapist are conducted both in counseling centers and in hospitals and private clinics, as well as online.

Regardless of the location of the sessions, a good psychologist or psychotherapist will take care of a comfortable and safe environment where you can relax and begin to solve accumulated problems and take the first steps to help you get rid of psychological trauma.

If you decide to resort to CP therapy, you will have a chance to learn how to manage symptoms of depression, anger and other destructive feelings. And your treating psychologist will do everything possible to provide the appropriate conditions so that you can truly open up.

Participation in cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is possible either individually or as part of a group with other people. At the same time, certified psychologists working in other areas are allowed to attend sessions.

The benefit of cognitive behavioral therapy is relief from depression and stress.

Anxiety and depression. Often people don't see the difference between these terms. In fact, these are different conditions, but they have something in common - a self-destructive nature.

The consequence of an anxiety disorder is the appearance of restless thoughts, most often illogical. Anxiety disorder is fueled from within, which makes this condition difficult to overcome.

Depression is accompanied by negative thoughts, which only contribute to a worsening state of mind. Depression aggravates the existing disorder, so it is especially difficult for a person during this period.

CP therapy helps get rid of depression and stress: most often the client’s complaints combine both.

The principle of action and treatment is as follows:

With depression, a person rejects or drives away bad thoughts associated with anxiety and depression, this helps to strengthen them, since without recognizing the problem, there is little that can be done about it.

Cognitive behavioral therapy helps to understand and eliminate the side effects of depression, such as intrusive anxious thoughts and insomnia.

Constant practice is the key to success, step by step new positive patterns will become part of your thinking. Depression and other mental health symptoms will no longer have a chance to exist.

Any specialist with a diploma of higher psychological education can practice CBT after appropriate requalification. A psychiatrist can also do this, with only one difference: a psychiatrist can make a diagnosis and prescribe medications, whereas a psychologist does not have such competence. Later in the article we will talk in more detail about the differences between a psychologist and a psychiatrist when treating depression and will help resolve the question of how psychologists and psychiatrists treat depression and where to turn for help.

Check if you have depression

"Beck Depression Test"

Causes of depression

According to statistics, in 90% of cases, the main cause of depressive illness is:

Affective disorder
Presence of psychological trauma
Prevalence of persistent chronic stress.

If the catalyst for depression is psychological trauma, it is considered reactive. They are characterized by such events as the loss of a loved one, the destruction of relationships, the emergence of conflict situations with the work team, an unstable financial situation, reaching retirement age, moving to another city or country.

The occurrence of a depressive state when a person achieves success in the business he has begun deserves special attention. Professional psychologists explain this phenomenon by the fact that there is a temporary loss of goals and meaning for further life activities. Neurotic depression occurs due to a constant state of stress. It is often almost impossible to find a specific reason that can contribute to its development. As a rule, during the research process, the patient begins to describe his life as a continuous series of failures and losses, which most often has an unrealistic assessment of what is happening.

Females are more susceptible to depression than males. Regarding age, the number of cases in people of mature age is higher than in the younger generation. However, there are other factors that cause diseases: these are extreme indicators on the scale of excessive financial wealth and poverty, low self-esteem, dissatisfaction with oneself, childhood trauma, lack of social contacts in society, “black sheep” syndrome.

Considering the total number of mood disorders, 1% is endogenous depression as a rare disease. It leads to periodic depression with the spread of manic psychosis. Appears as a result of pathologies that arise in the metabolic process of amines of the biogenic group, slowing down or accelerating metabolic processes, usually developing with aging.

The next group of reasons is anatomical, implying diseases at the somatic level or pathological processes localized in the brain. According to studies, in half of cases depression occurs during rehabilitation after a heart attack or stroke, 60% are due to chronic diseases of the cardiovascular system, 15% suffer from TBI (traumatic brain injury).

The likelihood of depressive conditions increases if hormonal levels change (pregnancy or menopause). The body undergoes serious physiological changes that are reflected on the emotional and physical level. Often a person begins to get tired faster, the period of active performance decreases, memory and attention deteriorate. Such changes are accompanied by age shifts: some grow up, some grow old, teenagers move into the stage of adolescence.

The most common somatic ailments include ischemia, diabetes of any group, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, central nervous system, liver, and kidneys. Citizens suffering from any type of addiction are also susceptible to depression.

Psychiatrists

Psychiatric help for depression. A psychiatrist has a diploma in psychiatry, often takes part in cutting-edge research related to his specialization, and has a doctorate or advanced degree. It is their responsibility to conduct research on topics of interest to them, together with their colleagues or as teachers in higher education institutions. The work of a psychiatrist includes diagnosing patients and determining treatment methods based on observations.

With the help of these specialists, they provide support and control over the mental state of those who come to the clinic, they direct patients in the right direction, help them make this or that choice, provide support in a difficult situation, and help clarify their feelings to determine the next steps towards recovery. Often the work of a psychiatrist is built in a team together with a clinical psychologist. Since a psychologist cannot prescribe medication, but a psychiatrist has such powers.

We strengthen “compliance”, that is, we bring the action in accordance with the request.

At this stage, as I already mentioned, we will work with defense mechanisms that prevent a person who is in a state of depression from building behavior adequate to satisfy the “pressing” need. These are our bricks, logs, blocks - in a word, the main building material. Having collected information about the ways of a depressed person, how he prevents himself from being happy (resistance mechanisms), we gain access to building material, that is, the organization of the transformation process as such (contact).

Psychologists

Psychologist's work with depression. Psychologists in their work can practice various areas of work, including in the social sphere. When people talk about a psychologist, they often mean a social worker or a counselor. In this regard, it is possible that they have degrees in various fields, including undergraduate medical education, a doctorate in psychology or a master's degree.

You will find support and support in a psychologist, but their functions differ depending on the level of qualifications and the degree of knowledge acquired. Understanding the main differences between a psychologist, a clinical psychologist and a psychiatrist will be key in finding the right professional, especially for the first time.

If you are wondering whether it is worth going to a psychologist for depression, or you suspect that you have other psychological difficulties, and are faced with the difficulty of choosing a specialist, if you do not want to spend a lot of effort and time, trust Helppoint. Complete the questionnaire and we will select the most suitable psychologist for you. Don’t put the problem aside, start communicating with a specialist right now.

The information presented in this material is for informational purposes only and does not replace professional advice from a physician. If you notice signs of depression, consult a specialist!

Author: Editorial staff of the Help-Point.net portal

Start working with a psychologist right now

Start a consultation

Tags: test depression depression online consultation online psychologist