Depression: how to help the patient decide on the need for treatment?

Has your friend or loved one changed? You thought it was a temporary spleen, but it does not go away for weeks? And the condition of a loved one is getting worse? Perhaps a loved one has experienced sorrow? Or is it possible that this is depression?

If you think that a person who is close to you is depressed, persuade him to see a doctor.

This article will help you with this.

Key points

• Depression is a disease. It's not just laziness and it will not go away.
• Depression is a widespread disease and it does not need to be ashamed of.
• The greatest thing you can do for a loved one is to help him turn for help.
• Do not ignore the talk of suicide. Talk with your doctor if necessary.
• The treatment does give a good result. There are many treatment options and various specialists ready to help a sick person.
• Depression can be caused by a serious physical illness. Treatment of the underlying disease can cure depression.

What is depression?

Depression is a disease. It occurs as a result of a change in the level of chemical elements in the brain. Depression is not a trait of character and does not mean that a person is weak or bad. This does not mean that a person is going crazy.

Depression causes a sick person a constant sense of depression and helplessness. It is different from the usual feeling of bad mood, sorrow and no activity. The sick person loses interest in daily activities, most of the time he is sad and grouchy. Other symptoms of depression include loss or weight gain and a constant sense of fatigue. The sick person loses interest in daily activities, most of the time he is sad and grouchy.

Depression is a common disease. It affects people of different ages, nationalities and social belonging. Most often it has a hereditary character. However, depression can appear in people without a hereditary predisposition. Depression can appear once in a lifetime or have a recurring character.

Medications, psychotherapy sessions and constant self-care will help cure depression. A lot of people do not ask for help because they are ashamed and think that they will be able to recover themselves. However, in order to completely recover from this disease, treatment under the guidance of a doctor is necessary.

A lot of people do not ask for help because they are ashamed and think that they will be able to recover themselves. However, in order to completely recover from this disease, treatment under the guidance of a doctor is necessary.

The method of treatment of depression depends on the degree of its complexity and includes treatment with medications, sessions of psychotherapy, constant care of oneself and a combination of all these methods. Sometimes, before the patient finds an effective method of treatment, he has to try different methods and means. Most people feel relief already in the first-third week of treatment, but to see the result of treatment it is necessary to wait 6-8 weeks.

Depression is a common disease. It affects people of different ages, nationalities and social belonging. Most often it has a hereditary character. However, depression can appear in people without a hereditary predisposition. Depression can appear once in a lifetime or have a recurring character.

Why, when the first symptoms of depression need to consult a doctor?

Most people believe that depression is not a disease and can be managed alone. However, depression is a serious disease and it is impossible to cope with it alone. If a person close to you suffers from the symptoms of depression, then you need to see a doctor for the following reasons:

• Only a doctor can diagnose depression or other illness. The correct diagnosis is the first step in the treatment of depression.
• In most cases, people are not able to cure depression on their own. Without proper treatment, depression will progress.
• In the first weeks of treatment, the condition of patients improves.
• If a person has already had a bout of depression in the past, then most likely it will happen again. Without treatment, a second episode of depression is more likely, with a more severe form.

If you suspect a loved one is depressed, the greatest thing you can do for him is to persuade to see a doctor. The earlier the patient begins treatment, the faster his condition will improve.

How can you help?

If you are worried about a person close to you, you will want to talk with him about it. We will show you how to do it better:

Tell this person about depression and why you are worried

• Note that depression is not laziness and no problems with the head. Explain that this disease and it does not need to be ashamed of.
• Tell this person about the symptoms of depression, pointing out to him his symptoms. Tell us why it bothers you and that you want to help.
• Ask him to answer the questions of the interactive test to make sure your suspicions.

Explain to this person why it is important to seek medical help from a doctor

• Tell us that a very limited number of people manage to cope with depression on their own. Most require certain treatment. The sooner the treatment begins, the faster the relief of symptoms.
• Note that there are a large number of professionals treating depression and a variety of treatments. Even if he has depression, it is not necessary to go to a therapist and take medication. Even a family doctor can prescribe a treatment.
• Pay attention to the fact that depression can be caused by another more serious disease. For example, with a disorder of the thyroid gland, depression symptoms may occur. Only a doctor can determine such a disease and prescribe a treatment, which in turn will ease the symptoms of depression. Also, only the doctor will be able to determine if the symptoms of depression are caused by certain medications that you use.

Watch for manifestations of suicidal behavior

• Watch for manifestations of suicidal behavior, for example, constant talk about death, distribution of your belongings and writing a will. If you notice this behavior, contact your doctor.
• Immediately call for help if:
  • a person is going to harm himself or others. For example, a patient has a murder weapon, a murder plan or he / she collects pills.
  • a person has auditory or visual hallucinations.
  • the man had a strange manner of talking, which he had never seen before.

Help him overcome the fear of treatment

Many people for their own reasons do not want to go to the doctors. Talk to this person about his fears and help him overcome them.

Fear	Decision
"Going to a psychiatrist? I'm not crazy." "People will think that I'm weak." "What will my relatives and friends think of me?"	It is not necessary to seek help from a psychiatrist or psychologist. Your family doctor will also be able to help you. If you are looking for help, it will give you a sense of relief. To ask for help, you need to be a strong person. Psychological disorders are real diseases and they can affect the overall health. Often they are associated with changes in the level of chemical elements in the brain or with heredity, and not with a character trait. With a suitable method of treatment, your condition will improve. Treatment can consist of taking medication, attending psychotherapy sessions, taking care of yourself or combining these methods. The choice of method of treatment depends on the severity of the disease.
"It will hurt my career."	You think that if employees find out about your depression, it will hurt your career. However, depression can interfere with you, qualitatively fulfill their responsibilities. Treatment will prevent this possibility.
"I've already tried to attend psychotherapy sessions in the past and I did not like it."	Learn more about this method of treatment and find a doctor you can trust. If you do not like your doctor, try visiting another one.
"Is not depression medication addictive?" "These drugs either make you crazy, or deprive you of the desire for sex."	Medication for depression is not addictive. Medications from depression do have side effects and one of them is a disorder of sexual function. If you are concerned about side effects, your doctor will choose the remedy with the least side effects or change the dose.
"Somebody can see my medical record and read about my illness."	Doctors, clinics, private consultants and hospitals carefully monitor the confidentiality of your information. They will never let you read your medical record to people who are not related to treatment. If you are still worried about this, ask the doctor how he keeps the medical records.
"It's very difficult to find time for doctor visits." "I can not get to the doctor."	Study your schedule and find the most suitable time for a visit to a doctor. Ask him to make an appointment at the time that suits you. When you sign up for an appointment, tell the doctor about your situation. Most doctors will pick up such a time for reception, which will suit you both. Ask a friend to take you to a doctor or learn which buses go to this place.
"I tried to tell people about my problem, but they do not understand me, they do not care."	It is very difficult for some people to understand what depression is. However, people who have experienced this problem will understand you. Think about the possibility of visiting support groups.
"Treatment is very expensive, I can not afford it."	Almost every city has a service where you will find help. Contact local social services. If you have health insurance, check your policy. Sometimes the policy indicates the costs of treating mental illness. Ask the doctor to help you. He will be able to tell where to find free support groups or write an inexpensive medicine. Ask at medical universities if they have any training programs. Visiting such programs can be much cheaper.

Depression: How to support a sick person?

If you learned that a person close to you was diagnosed with depression, you may feel helpless. Perhaps you see how once a person full of vital energy becomes inactive or, as your friend lost interest in once-loved pursuits. Your friend or loved one can change so much that you feel that you do not know him / her at all.

Of course, you will want to help somehow. This article will help you with this.

Key points

• Depression is a disease. It's not laziness and it will not pass by itself.
• The biggest thing you can do to help a sick person is to convince him not to quit treatment.
• Offer your support. You can do this if you understand the essence of depression, be patient and offer help.
• Do not ignore the talk about suicide. Tell the doctor about it.
• Convince the patient that with the help of proper treatment he will soon become much easier. The method of treatment depends on the degree of complexity of the disease and includes the use of antidepressants, attending psychotherapy sessions, taking care of themselves or a combination of all these methods.

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Why is it important to show your support to a sick person?

If you have never suffered from depression, it will be difficult for you to imagine how hopelessly and depressed the patient can feel. Depression can make your life as unbearable as any other serious physical illness. It will not give you full care for your family, work and social responsibilities.

It is very important to show your support to the patient because:

• Your help will affect the effectiveness of treatment and will keep the patient from refusing him. And this is better than you could help him.
• It will help the patient to raise self-esteem and self-confidence. This will help the patient to better cope with duties at work, at home, at school and in daily life.
• Show the patient that he / she has friends. Friendship will help him understand that he is not alone.

How to help a person with depression?

Here are tips on how you could help a sick person:

Do self-study

The more you know about depression, the better you can understand what a sick person is going through.

• Learn the whole truth and not the truth about depression.
• Learn the signs of suicidal behavior, for example, frequent conversations about death or the distribution of your own things, the writing of a will. If you notice this behavior, contact this person's doctor.
• Be sure to call the emergency service if:
  • a person is going to harm himself or other people. For example, this person has a murder weapon (gun), a murder plan or he / she collects pills.
  • the person suffers from visual or auditory hallucinations.
  • the person talks and behaves in a strange, not peculiar to him manner.

Help him with treatment

If you have the opportunity, then:

• Help the patient make an appointment with a doctor and go along with him at the first appointment.
• Help the patient take medicine.
• Examine the side effects of the drug and, if necessary, contact your doctor.
• Remind the patient that antidepressants are the most effective way of treatment, and to get rid of side effects, you can always reduce the dose or change the drug.

Helping a sick person at home

If a person is depressed, he feels lonely in this world. And with such thoughts, your support can help.

• Listen to the patient when he needs to speak out. If you want to help this person, discuss his problems, it will help him feel relieved and continue treatment.
• Do not give advice. However, imperceptibly assure him that not everything is so bad and there is hope. Persuade this person to continue treatment. Do not tell this person that he is lazy or that he should be strong to be cured.
• Try to keep your relationship as they were before the illness. But do not pretend that depression does not exist.
• Ask this person to join you in a walk or camping trip to the cinema, support him in desire and continue to do your favorite pursuits. If the person does not answer, let him. Ask him to do it again after a while. But do not press him, it can aggravate his condition.
• Ask what you can do in your daily life. You can help with housework or lawn mowing, you can pick up children from school or accompany him on a business trip.
• Do not be offended. If your husband or wife is sick, or a person very close to you, you may feel hurt, because a loved one does not pay attention to you, has become aggressive. Remember, the person you love still loves you, but can not show it.

Take care of yourself

Being constantly with a depressed person can be a difficult task for you. These tips will help you:

• First of all, remember yourself. Do not deny yourself a favorite occupation, for example, visiting relatives or going to the cinema.
• Do not get too caring. The most common mistake of close people is that they take care of the patient too much. People love to take care of themselves, even if they do not admit it. You also need a rest.
• Do not try to do everything yourself. Ask someone to help you or join a support group. The more you feel support, the more you will help the patient.