Thursday, January 10, 2013

Guerrilla Tactics in Battling Depression, Part 1

That last post had a life of its own; I think I was originally going to write this post, but I needed to say that stuff first. Anyway, as this blog has "mental health" in the title, and because, you know, I want to, I think it's okay to write about depression right now.

Employing guerrilla tactics is an advisable course of action when battling the tenacious anti-hero, Depression. What does that mean? It means, first of all, that one must come to grips with the fact that there is no magic bullet, and there is no single "cure," for depression. To be sure, some things work better than others for different people, and may take the lead role in their treatment and recovery, kind of like how the Marines are (to my understanding) the elite, front-line branch of the military. (I'm no fan of warfare, but let's stick with that metaphor for a sec.) But in times of full-scale war, the Marines can't do it alone, can they? They need the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, and the Special Forces to all do their thing, too, right? Right. So we must refrain, then, from endowing any one treatment method with our "magic bullet" hopes. Kapisch? Kapisch.

Depression is a terrible thing. It can be lethal, and often is. It has a negative impact on our ability to think, make decisions, prioritize tasks, etc.; i.e., it messes up our cognitive functioning. It screws up our bodies, too. Lots of people suffering from depression feel achy and sluggish, and find themselves more prone to illness and injury. Many people with depression have experienced unusually disruptive sleep: some people report feeling the need to sleep all day (or not get out of bed); others report great difficulty falling asleep; others report difficulty staying asleep. Depression can even affect a person's appetite. Some sufferers lose their appetite either entirely or in part, and lose weight; some others begin to eat more than usual, and gain weight.

And of course, depression obliterates one's moods. Some people describe depression as being somewhere along the sadness continuum. I've heard others describe it as an absence of feeling altogether, or as a terrible, black emptiness. Regardless, it impedes (to put it nicely) one's ability to experience themselves, other people, and, well, the whole of the world external to them. The sum total of all this is that depression can, and often does, destroy a person's life as they know it. It is an equal-opportunity problem, meaning it occurs regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, etc.; it is widespread; and it is to be taken seriously.

The really tricky thing is that, while there are detectable symptoms of depression (some of which I described above), it can look very, very different from person to person. The reason for that is simple: we're all different. Depression, as I noted, affects just about every aspect of a person's, well, person. It interacts with thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and physical-body processes; and since we're all different, there isn't an algorithm, per se, that can necessarily predict how depression will manifest in an individual. (To be sure, one who suffers from depression can learn to recognize the signs and symptoms of depression within themselves; rather, I'm talking about depression in general terms.)

Let's regroup for a moment. My primary observations in this little essay are that, 1) depression affects all aspects of a person's self, and is not, in fact, "just" about feeling down in the dumps; and 2) depression manifests differently in different people. Thus, I conclude that it doesn't seem reasonable to expect any single treatment method to -- voila! -- do the trick. No. An effective treatment for depression will include a whole-person approach, and will address, perhaps, the medical aspect (medication), emotional aspect (too many to list, but talk therapy is up there), and physical aspect (behavior modification, e.g., exercise).

I'm no shill for the pharmaceutical industry. In fact, I suspect/believe that many psychiatric medications are over-prescribed. I'm also nervous about the short-term side effects of many psychiatric medications; and I wonder about the long-term ramifications of their use. Anyway, in spite of those doubts, I strongly believe that medication is imperative for many folks suffering from depression. (There's not much I can really add to that statement, so I'll end it there.)

I'm biased in favor of talk therapy, but I concede it is most certainly not the best option for everyone -- for a variety of reasons, you know? Sometimes a person just can't afford it. There's also a strong stigma, especially for men in our (USA) culture, against seeing a therapist. Or, sometimes a person just doesn't think very highly of therapy in general, for personal and/or cultural reasons. That being said, I believe therapy can be extraordinarily helpful for someone suffering from depression -- even life-changing. There is unique and powerful value in the therapeutic alliance, there really is. It's an opportunity to discuss, learn, and grow in a supportive environment, and with someone you don't have to worry about upsetting, insulting, or alienating. It's a therapist's job to help their clients get where they want to go, so to speak. It can be a great thing.

The behavioral aspect warrants its own post. Stay tuned.

No comments:

Post a Comment