Depression?!
Question:
Depression?
I'm trying to help my brother who has been going through depression for a couple of years. He is really keen to beat it but has hit a brick wall. He has tried counselling but it didnt work for him and is on a heavy dose of medication which only take the edge off. I am aware of different kinds of counselling, he has tried CBT and one to one with a phsyciatrist, neither helped. Has anyone been through this who could offer some advice about what he should do next? His G.P isnt very good and he is looking into changing practices, the one he had before (he moved from the catchment area) who was good but even then still didnt find a 'cure'. I hate to see him in pain, What can he do now? We have exhausted all means we know of.
Answers:
Your brother is so lucky to have a sister who cares so much about him. As someone who has had depression for over 4 years, I must say that it is crucial to have the support systems that you are describing.
Depresssion is very crippling and, unfortunately, there's not always an answer as to which treatment is best. It sounds as though your brother may need a second opinion, both psychologist and psychiatrist. The fact that you said the medication was taking off the edge gives me the impression that maybe medication will help eventually but perhaps not this one. It took me over 9 different meds before I was actually regulated and was at a point where I could say, "hey this might actually help." On the other hand though, like you've experianced, meds don't work for everyone, which is why I would try to find a different psychologist on top of psychiatrist. Maybe ask your brother's main physician if he recommends somebody. Sometimes changing therapists can be very beneficial, even though the process of trust has to be rebuilt. The switch for me, although extremely difficult, helped tremendously.
On a totally different note, maybe your brother could try some other techniques such as yoga or reiki (http://www.reiki.org/faq/whatisreiki.htm... It's a totally different approach that probably won't make a remarkable difference but it might be something to just try out. I can't say it made my depression better but it did divert my mind away from it for a while.
Good luck with everything.