Psychotherapy for Treatment of Depression

Psychotherapy for Treatment of Depression

Psychotherapy changes your negative thought patterns and the way you react to depressive situations.It gives you a positive outlook on life.


Psychotherapy is not considered as a mainstream treatment for depression. But many studies show that psychotherapy may be more effective than anti-depressants in treating mild to moderate depression.

Psychologists and psychiatrists use psychotherapy for treatment of depression. Negative thinking, mainly the feeling of worthlessness, interferes with recovery, despite drug treatment and makes you more vulnerable to future episodes of depression. This therapy helps you change your thought patterns and the way you react to situations.

Psychotherapy works in the following way.

• Therapists help you to identify the problems that contribute to depression and work on those problems that are capable of being solved or improved.
• Through psychotherapy approach, therapists help you to identify negative thinking patterns and feelings of hopelessness and help you nurture a more positive outlook on life.
• Psychotherapy helps you regain a sense of control and return to your pleasurable activities that are disrupted during depression.

There are many psychotherapy approaches but the most commonly used are:

1. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) - Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a scientifically well established and effective treatment for depression. Over 75 percent of patients show significant improvements. CBT helps you to identify your negative thoughts (cognitive restructuring) and then seeks to remedy this by helping you find new ways of going about your everyday life (behavioral activation) and helps you take a more positive outlook on life.

2. Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) - Interpersonal therapy helps you deal with people positively and find new ways to get along with others. Short term IPT involves up to 20 sessions, usually one-hour session per week, and focuses on one to two issues related to depression.


3. Family Therapy for depression - This therapy helps family members to find new ways to support and care for the member who has depression. Family therapy for depression is widely used in the U. K. and the U.S. However, a Cochrane review found that other psychological treatments are better interventions for treating depression but family therapy is more effective than no treatment or delayed treatment.

4. Psychodynamic therapy for depression - Psychodynamic therapy is a long term and an expensive therapy for depression that looks at how past experiences, especially childhood and early life experiences, affect you now and then helps you to deal with them.

Reference details for Holistic Management of Depression.

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