Proven Treatment for Depression

Clinical depression can have a number of biochemical, environmental or situational causes. No single depression treatment is universally effective. Antidepressant medication, light therapy, psychotherapy, and electroconvulsive therapy are all proven treatments for depression, but some may benefit certain individuals more than others.

Psychotherapy

• The National Alliance on Mental Illness reports psychotherapy is often an effective treatment for mild depression, but severe clinical depression usually requires the addition of antidepressant medication.

Medication

• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration finds as much as 70 percent of depression sufferers benefit from antidepressant medication.

Electroconvulsive Therapy

• The U.S. National Library of Medicine reports that electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), a treatment using electrical shocks to alter brain chemistry, has been found more effective than antidepressant medicine for depression treatment in clinical research.

Light Therapy

• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services asserts that light therapy, a treatment involving daily exposure to intense artificial lighting, is an effective treatment for depression and seasonal affective disorder.

Individualization

• According to the Mayo Clinic, no single treatment fits all depressed individuals so health-care providers work as a team to create treatment plans to suit the needs of each patient.