How Is Clinical Depression Diagnosed

The first step in clinical depression diagnosis is an accurate evaluation of the seriousness of the condition. The primary diagnostic tool is the twenty-one question Beck Depression Inventory. Two versions are currently in use, the original first published in 1961 (revised in 1971) and the 1996 edition of the test.

A potential drawback with the Beck Depression Inventory is the fact that it relies heavily on an evaluation of physical symptoms. Since some illnesses cause symptoms that mimic depression, potential erroneous evaluations are possible. Still, the Beck Inventory is an excellent and effective tool and is widely used.

How Is Clinical Depression Treated?

Clinical depression treatment is a highly individualized process. Often combination therapies are required. There are many popular antidepressant medications such as Prozac (fluoxetine) , Paxil (paroxetine), and Zoloft (sertraline) that prevent the reuptake of serotonin in the brain. Serotonin creates the pathway along which brain cells communicate. Depression seems to exist in the presence of insufficient levels of serotonin. These selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the current standard for depression treatment.

Older antidepressants that are monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) are rarely prescribed today as they present potentially fatal interactions with other drugs. The same is true of tricyclic antidepressants that increase heart rate, cause drowsiness, and impair the memory. Milder cases of depression may benefit from a natural remedy, St. John's Wort that is prescribed in Europe as often as SSRIs.

In extremely rare cases electroconvulsive or "shock" therapy may be used to treat depression but, although the method is effective, the side effects can be devastating. In the immediate wake of a treatment a patient will experience confusion and memory loss that may become permanent. In general most physicians feel there are infinitely better and safer avenues to relieve clinical depression.

How Do You Cope With Clinical Depression?

Traditional psychotherapy or "talk" therapies are useful in coping with clinical depression in conjunction with other therapies. Understanding the causes of your depression and learning how to prevent a recurrence can ease the pain of the condition for the individual and address the concurrent social, familial, and job-related disruptions.

Depression is a socially isolating condition and having a support system is a crucial element of getting past the problem. Patients should also eat, sleep, and exercise regularly and engage in work or leisure activities that are engaging and serve to take the individual "out" of themselves.

A major depression is not a condition that should be ignored. The pace and pressure of modern life have given rise to increasing numbers of Americans suffering from clinical depression symptoms. Good therapies exist and there is no shame in seeking help.

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