CAM and Conventional Therapies for Depression
Select and complete two of the four assignment options listed below.
Assignment Options
Select and complete two of the four assignment options listed below. Complete each assignment, and upload and submit it to the Assignment 1 or Assignment 2 link on the course home page.
Weight: Each assignment is worth 25% of your final grade (for a total of 50%).
Due: The first assignment option you select is due after you have completed Unit 12. The second selected assignment is due after you have completed Unit 17, but before you write the final examination. Before you begin the assignments, take time to review the “Academic Integrity” section in the Student Manual. You will upload your completed work on the appropriate Assignment link on the course home page, and your Academic Expert will upload feedback to that link. Should you have difficulty understanding what you need to do for either assignment, contact your Academic Expert. Format Each assignment should be seven to ten pages long (about 1800–2500 words), 12-point font, double spaced. Use APA style to list and cite all sources used. Include a title page and reference list (not counted in the seven to ten pages required). Note that you are not asked to format the entire paper in APA style; you are only using APA style to list your references and cite them in the paper. There are many online tools to help you with this. Grading The important thing is to cover your topic as thoroughly as needed to give a reader a complete picture of the issue. It’s a good idea to ask a friend or family member to review your work and alert you to any information gaps—their questions show you what essential content you’ve left out. Your Academic Expert will evaluate your assignment for accuracy and completeness, then upload a response file plus comments and your mark (grade) to the assignment link. Your Academic Expert will, if necessary, correct and comment on grammar and spelling, but recommendations of this type are intended to help you improve your writing skills. Grades (marks) will be based mainly on the content of your work. Listed below are the primary criteria that will be used to evaluate your essay:
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CAM and Conventional Therapies for Depression
Misri Qureshi
3546310
Athabasca University
1st November’ 2023
CAM and Conventional Therapies for Depression
Depression, also known as major depression disorder or clinical depression, is a chronicle feeling of sadness, emptiness, or inability to feel pleasure that may appear to happen for no apparent reason (Ellis et al., 2016). There are varying degrees of depression; major depression is the most severe. Depression is a mood disorder causing a persistent lack of interest and sadness (Ellis et al., 2016). The disorder affects how one behaves, associates with others, feels, and thinks, leading to various emotional and psychological problems. Major depression disorder is a common and serious medical illness causing loss of interest in the things they once loved and enjoyed and decreasing a person's ability to function at home and work. Fortunately, the disorder can be diagnosed and treatable.
Treatment of MDD consists of pharmacological and psychological treatment or a combination of both interventions. Currently, the more advanced treatment of depression is antidepressant medication and therapy. The medication can be prescribed with psychological treatment when the patient experiences mild, moderate, or severe episodes of depression (Ellis et al., 2016). The differences between the three selected types of depression are as follows.
The mild depression phase is where individuals experience emotions such as sadness, and they also show decreased interest when doing different usual activities. The symptoms are present in an individual's life, but the impacts are not severe because they do not disrupt the actions or processes of an individual's daily life.
Moderate depression involves having more pronounced symptoms. The symptoms often lead to decreased functioning, which is notable as another person can observe changes. It limits an individual ability to enjoy life to the fullest. Hence, it affects a person's work, quality of life, and overall relationships.
Severe/major depression is the most critical form of depression that an individual can face. It is categorized as a major depressive disorder, which [presents the most severe form that one can face in depression. Among the characteristics of depression is having a significant loss of interest in the activities that they initially enjoyed doing. Further, there is a profound impact because the individual suffering from major depression finds it difficult to function effectively at home or work.
Recently, pharmacological approaches have been the common treatment for major depressive disorder, with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) frequently used (Riveros et al., 2022). Although the methods currently employed to cope with the disorder are working, there is an advantage in introducing and blending CAM and conventional therapies for depression. Disputable depending on what is used. Therapy is important in treating depression. For example, individuals suffering from depression can be subjected to psychotherapy such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), they can undertake interpersonal therapy, and be part of evidence-based modalities. These are vital components for consideration for depression treatment. It should be understood that through these therapeutic techniques, individuals get the advantage as they can explore their thoughts and emotions, which creates an opportunity for treatment. Strategies are developed, and there is working towards a balanced mood in the process.
Medications are also modalities that are applied in treating depression. In this case, the healthcare professionals are tasked with the opportunity of prescribing antidepressant medications. The aim of giving patients antidepressants is to aid in the reduction of the symptoms that individuals face because of depression and also help the patients be in a position to balance their emotions. Medications are important because they help to handle moderate through to severe depression (Ng et al., 2020). Lastly, combined with medication is the application of lifestyle changes. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle through regular exercise, having balanced nutrition, and adequate sleep. Ind is importantividuals who are suffering from depression need to be told how lifestyle changes should take place and have a plan to incorporate into their daily lives (Ng et al., 2020). Implementing self-care practices and stress management is important to complement the identified forms of treatment.
The statistics show that many patients prefer psychological treatment to drug-based treatment. The concern remains that the disease is not fully understood, and the cause of depression remains unknown (Ashraf, 2021). Therefore, many drugs and methods to treat the disease are continuously being developed and improved to ensure high results. According to the research by Riveros 2022, some patients experience adverse results from the treatment through drugs, resulting in readmissions to hospitals. If they experience adverse (negative) results, it would not be remission>. Moreover, there are additional treatments administered to improve the patients. What an incomplete sentence. Psychological therapy is an added treatment with a significant success rate of fifty percent (Wang et al., 2020). They include behavioral activation therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, interpersonal psychotherapy, non-direct counseling, and problem-solving therapy.
The proposed treatment for difficult-to-treat depression aims to treat or attempt to treat patients with the disease burden despite previous treatment efforts. The treatment for DTD is still being developed and researched extensively to improve results (Riveros et al., 2022). Improvement of SRRI, tricyclics dose, and the combination with lithium or atypical antipsychotic drugs are currently in use and showing promising results. A significant gap remains; studies are still needed to fill in data in this field and improve results and statistics.
Recently, there has been a surge in interest in CAM worldwide, and many patients consult CAM practitioners annually. The most common reason for the high preference rate in CAM has been dissatisfaction with drug treatments, side effects of the drugs, and communication skills impairments. Between practitioner and patient (Ng et al., 2020). In previous years, CAM has faced challenges from physicians who believe that CAM may delay diagnosis and launch therapy procedures for patients; not informing physicians about the therapy and awkward sentencing makes no sense. On the other hand, CAM has shown improvement in some patients and a high success rate (Wang et al., 2020). Alternative therapy that has been used and shown promise includes exercise, meditation, acupuncture, herbal remedies, reflexology, massage, guided imagery, and yoga. Beyond this section, you need to discuss and critically assess. All you have done is list therapies.
Guided Imagery
Guided imagery is a relaxation technique involving the patient lying down quietly, imagining herself in a peaceful setting as a goal to help cope with depression. The techniques make thoughts more evocative through sensory stimulation (Ellis, 2016). The act helps hinder thoughts when they become overwhelming and assists in planning the future and remembering the past without stress increase (Hopper et al., 2019). The technique allows the reactivation of internal representations when the corresponding stimuli are absent.
Guided imagery is important and helps in the treatment of depression, which includes handling major depressive disorder (MDD). The concern is that the guided imagery's effectiveness varies from individual to individual, and the application success should be considered when applied in a broader perspective or context. In this case, treatment of depression will be a success when implementing a comprehensive treatment plan (Hopper et al., 2019). Guided imagery is an effective CAM in treating depression and MDD because it helps in stress reduction and relaxation. When treating major depressive disorders, where the individual is facing a persistent feeling of sadness and they also feel hopelessness, their stress levels are usually heightened. However, with the implementation of guided imagery, there is a valuable reprieve. Individuals will be taught how to relax, which reduces emotional distress in the long run (Hopper et al., 2019). For example, patient with major depressive disorder will be told to imagine a beautiful place that they value, and upon imagination, they will start ...