Will depression get better?

Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
Updated on September 22, 2024
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Patients with depression can achieve clinical recovery. Large-scale survey studies have found that about 85% of patients can reach clinical recovery as long as they undergo systematic and standardized treatment. At the same time, systematic and standardized psychotherapy and physical therapy should also be conducted. This can uphold the recurrence rate or relapse rate of the patients. Studies have found that about 20% relapse within six months after the initial treatment, and the relapse rate reaches 50% within two years. For older patients, their relapse rate may be even higher. Therefore, depression is a highly curable disease, but also a highly recurrent disease. Systematic, standardized, and scientifically reasonable treatment is still a very important means to achieve good recovery rates and reduce relapses in depression.

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Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
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What are the symptoms of depression?

The clinical manifestations of depression include core symptoms primarily characterized by low mood, reduced interest, and lack of emotion. Patients often display an inability to feel joy, experiencing a persistent sadness and a noticeable decrease in interest and pleasure in activities they previously enjoyed. The psychological symptoms are dominated by anxiety, slowed thinking, and cognitive symptoms, with patients exhibiting irritability, tension, worry, and often slow thought association, dull thinking, impaired short-term memory, reduced attention, and significantly diminished learning, comprehension, and judgment abilities. The physical symptoms include sleep disturbances, eating disorders, and loss of energy, with common issues like difficulty falling asleep, light sleep, early waking, poor appetite, weight loss, feeling listless, fatigue, and an overwhelming sense of exhaustion in their daily lives.

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Written by Zhang Chun Yun
Obstetrics and Gynecology
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Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder Symptoms

Premenstrual dysphoria is a symptom of premenstrual syndrome, which can manifest as mood instability, fatigue, changes in diet, sleep, libido, lack of concentration, inability to work normally or reduced work efficiency, and even a tendency to have accidents at work. There may also be criminal behavior or suicidal thoughts. Therefore, family members should actively take the individual to the hospital for treatment. With the comfort and guidance of a psychologist, the patient with premenstrual dysphoria can relax and re-enter life in a relaxed state, adapting to their role. At the same time, under the doctor's advice, some antidepressant medications should be taken, along with a reasonable diet and appropriate physical exercise, specifically following the doctor’s instructions.

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Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
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What to do about insomnia caused by mild depression?

Patients with mild depression who experience insomnia symptoms can partly manage this through self-adjustment. For example, they can improve insomnia through exercise, especially two hours before bedtime, with medium intensity exercises to expend excess energy and ultimately achieve comprehensive muscle relaxation, leading to good sleeping habits. Additionally, in the treatment of mild depression, sedative antidepressants such as paroxetine, fluvoxamine, mirtazapine, and trazodone can be used, sometimes including tricyclic antidepressants like amitriptyline, which have been very satisfactory in their effects. Therefore, clinically, for insomnia in mild depression, both pharmacological treatment and self-adjustment methods can be adopted.

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Written by Du Rui Xia
Obstetrics
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What are the symptoms of postpartum depression?

In cases of postpartum depression, women primarily exhibit emotional excitability, as well as anxiety, feelings of helplessness, guilt, and concerns about being unable to support their child. Severe cases may involve fears of the child suffering in the world, leading to infanticidal actions, and even suicide. This condition generally occurs more frequently in women who have a history of mental illness. Following childbirth, due to physical discomfort, emotional instability, and factors such as sleep disturbances, these adverse reactions are likely to be exacerbated.

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Written by Pang Ji Cheng
Psychiatry and Psychology
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How long does it take for depression to get better?

The treatment of depression is generally divided into three stages: acute phase treatment, continuation phase treatment, and maintenance phase treatment. The complete recovery from depression depends on the individual characteristics of the patient. The acute phase treatment usually lasts one to three months, mainly focusing on controlling the symptoms related to depression. Additionally, during the continuation phase treatment, the medication period generally lasts four to nine months, and its main goal is to maintain the stability of the patient's condition and prevent relapse of the disease. As for the maintenance phase treatment, the duration of treatment is to be determined. Typically, the duration is one to two years after the first onset, three to five years after the second onset, and for patients who have had more than three episodes, it is recommended to maintain a low-dose medication treatment to prevent recurrence of the disease.