Best depression treatment; preferred by the patient

Depression is a condition of the mind, and the doctors suggest that the best depression treatment is what the patient suffering from depression chooses for themselves. The treatment that the patient wants the most is termed as the best possible treatment for them. Hence, the best depression treatment is subjective and depends on the patient. Although there are many experts that agree on a medical and psychotherapy is the best depression treatment. Not all patients want both the types of treatment, some people might be averse to any kind of medication while some do not like the idea of visiting a therapist.

For chronic conditions like diabetes and depression, the treatment goes way beyond just the medication. A major part of the treatment also depends on the nature of the patient, an active individual might receive a completely different treatment as compared to an inactive person. If a person is an introvert then their treatment will differ from the one that is received by an extroverted person.

Let us look at an example:

  • Dr. Edmund F. Chaney and his colleagues studied 335 patients with depression. Most of these patients were male ranging from the age of 24 to 84. Just for a test, these patients were asked for their preferred method of treatment. Fifteen percent preferred medication, twenty-four percent preferred psychotherapy, while the rest (sixty-one) preferred both the forms of treatment. After the study, the results showed that all the patients showed improvement in their depression.
  • Three months after this test was completed, seventy-two percent of the patients matched with their preferred treatment and were substantially less depressed than the ones who did not match. The patients that did not match, but got their preferred treatment were less depressed after nine months.

Best depression treatment helping the doctors.

As mentioned above, letting the patients choose their mode of treatment is ideally the best way to go ahead. The primary-doctors the doctor that the patient sees first must ask the patient for their preference before choosing a method of treatment for them. If the doctor directly refers the patient to a mental health specialist before looking out for the patient, the doctor might not be doing very good for the patient.

Whereas, when the doctor cares about the patient’s preferences then they feel a lot more accommodated in the process and thereby follow the instructions given by the doctor with an open mind.

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