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What Are Alternative Treatments for Depression

Depression, which is the term often used to describe a range of depressive disorders, is one of the most commonly experienced psychiatric syndromes in the world. However, there are many possible causes of long term depression disorders and every different cause may require a different form of treatment.

Understanding Depression Disorders

Depression disorders are extremely complex and sensitive and every year millions of people with depression seek out treatment options, which may include psychotherapy, natural antidepressants, herbal antidepressants and other depression alternative treatments, in order to seek relief.

Major depressive disorder is one of the most commonly reported and diagnosed depressive disorders, and the syndrome is also commonly referred to as major depression or clinical depression. This condition may cause people to lose interest or pleasure in nearly all regular activities and it may also how does kava kava work to suffer cognitive impairments, such as difficulty concentrating, making decisions, and remembering details. People suffering from depression that have not found a suitable treatment solution, which may involve psychotherapy or taking a combination of natural antidepressants and other depression alternative treatments, may also experience mood swings and irritability and may even have thoughts of death or committing suicide.

The Root Of Most Depression

Although there are many possible causes of clinical depression, many doctors associate depression with chemical imbalances in the brain. Within the brain, there are a number of substances and neurotransmitters, including serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, which help nerve cells in the brain communicate. These substances and neurotransmitters help the brain regulate mood and emotions.

Chemical Imbalances And Depression

Chemical imbalances in the brain, characterized by a shortage or excess amount of one or more of the substances may cause people to feel depressed. There are a number of available psychiatric medications available that help to balance these chemicals, however, many people prefer to take natural antidepressants or herbal antidepressants, because they believe these depression alternative treatments achieve the same result with fewer side effects.

Another form of depression, also known as seasonal affective disorder, is caused by seasonal changes. Many people who live in parts of the world that experience dramatic seasonal changes with varying amounts of exposure to sunlight often report feeling depressed. In some places in the world, there may be very limited sun exposure during the winter because of cloud cover and because of shortened days.

One popular depression alternative treatment for people suffering from seasonal affective disorder is bright light therapy. Light therapy consists of sustained exposure to daylight as well as specific wavelengths of light using lasers, light-emitting diodes, fluorescent lamps, and very bright full spectrum lights.

Many people believe that a variety of flower remedies and scents are able to enhance a person’s mood and combat depression, but most studies show that most of these treatments have little more than a placebo effect. However, some plants and herbal antidepressants have been shown to have antidepressant properties, including the kanna herb, which acts as a serotonin reuptake inhibitor, and saffron, which contains the active antidepressant ingredients crocin and safranal.