How to Write About Depression

According to Mental Health America (MHA), millions of Americans experience depression each year. Those who suffer from this illness possess an earnest desire to feel joy; however, depression does get progressively worse without professional help. Aid is frequently sought through reading books, newsletters, magazines or journals prior to a doctor visit or an appointment with a mental health practitioner. This offers the writing community an opportunity to provide support to those with depression.

Instructions

• 1

  Conduct interviews with experts in the field of depression. Consider doctors, RNs, biology professors, psychologists and mental health counselors who regularly work with this population. Furthermore, you might want to talk to actual sufferers of depression. Interviews provide your reader with first-hand information and brings your writing to life.

• 2

  Identify the types of depression. When writing about depression, make it clear to the reader that there are different types. For example, a woman with menopausal depression may receive relief after taking hormone pills or eliminating refined carbohydrates from her diet. Another type of depression is post-traumatic stress disorder. This disease is treated with an antidepressant to boost mood, rather than hormones.

• 3

  Describe the degrees of depression. Depression ranges from severe to mild. It's clinical depression when it's unbearable and causes loss of joy that lead to thoughts of suicide. On the other hand, persons with dysthymia feel low-mood, but pleasure is experienced. Those with mild depression do perform their daily activities of living consistently, such as housekeeping, working and socializing; however, persons with clinical depression find it difficult to perform.

• 4

  Make depression understandable, since many still don't comprehend how it affects the person. Family and friends especially need this information to understand that their loved one can't just snap out of it without professional help.

• 5

  Discuss the several ways that depression can occur. Let your reader know that it can happen as a result of a chemical imbalance, which is the case for those suffering bipolar disorder. Depression also results from the death of a loved one, especially if it's without warning.

• 6

  Write about the symptoms of depression. It is critical that the patient and his family know how to spot this illness; otherwise, help is difficult.

• 7

  Identify foods and beverages that might cause or aggravate depression. For example, sugar, sodas, refined carbohydrates and alcohol can worsen any type of depression. In addition, illegal drugs magnify the pain that accompanies this illness.

• 8

  Discuss some of the more common medications prescribed by one's doctor that effectively treat feelings of despair. A number of acceptable, proven drugs that balance the mood and offer hope for a normal life.

• 9

  Tell your reader about the importance of taking medication as prescribed. In other words, all medication should be taken as the doctor prescribes. Also, if the doctor suggests that alcohol and/or certain foods should be avoided for optimal recovery, the patient should know why.

• 10

  Inform readers about the trial-and-error period. After a patient's blood and/or urine tests, a doctor reviews the results and writes a prescription based on the findings; however, the dosage may be too high or low for the patient. In either case, the doctor will adjust the dosage. It is a collaborative effort in which the doctor and patient work together for best results. In addition, the medication may take up to eight weeks before it starts to work.

• 11

  Offer hope to that percentage of persons unable to tolerate antidepressants and for whom they produce no change in mood. For those individuals, write about psychotherapy, counseling, journaling, dance, pet and art therapy, and other alternative means of recovery.