Updated December 29, 2014.

The good news is that depression can be treated effectively. Depression treatment does work and helps people including those with HIV and depression to resume fulfilling lives.

Medications

There are several types of medications used to treat depression. While there are times when one anti-depressive medication will help, doctors often try several individual drugs as well as combinations of drugs until the desired effects are achieved.

Most times, it will take at least 3-4 weeks of therapy before the full affects of the therapy is realized. Like any medication taken over a long period of time, patients who are taking anti-depressives must be monitored for desired effects as well as adverse side effects. Some of the more common depression medications include:

• Serotonin-reuptake Inhibitors (SSRI's)
  Examples include Zoloft, Prozac and Paxil. These drugs work by increasing levels of serotonin in the brain, which improves mood, energy levels and the ability to have relationships with others.
• Heterocyclic and Other Designer Antidepressants
  Examples include Wellbutrin (Zyban) and Effexor. These drugs are designed to work on very specific neurotransmitters in the brain. Because of this they have fewer side effects than do SSRI's.
• Tricyclics
  Examples include amitriptyline (Elavil) and nortriptyline (Pamelor). This class of drugs was the standard of care prior to the introduction of SSRI's. While very effective for some people, this class of drugs has more side effects and can be lethal if overdose occurs.

• MAO Inhibitors
  This class of drug is primarily used when other anti-depressives are ineffective in treating depression. They are also most helpful when treating atypical depressions such as eating disorders and post-traumatic stress syndromes. They can have very serious side effects, most notably high blood pressure.

Important Warning! - Make sure you take any medication exactly as prescribed. Also notify your doctor of all medications being taken before starting or stopping anti-depressants.

Psychotherapy

Many forms of psychotherapy, including some short-term (10-20 week) therapies, can help with depression. There are a couple types:

• Talking Therapy -
• helps patients gain insight into the psychosocial cause of their depression. Once identified the therapy can help resolve the problems through verbal exchange with the therapist.
• Behavioral Therapy - helps patients learn how to obtain more satisfaction and rewards through their own actions and how to unlearn the behavioral patterns that contribute to or result from their depression.

There are also two types of short-term psychotherapies that research has shown helpful for some forms of depression.

• Interpersonal Therapy -
• focuses on the patient's disturbed personal relationships that both cause and exacerbate (or increase) the depression.
• Cognitive/behavioral Therapy - helps patients change the negative styles of thinking and behaving often associated with depression.
• Psychodynamic Therapy - sometimes used to treat depressed persons, focusing on resolving the patient's conflicted feelings. These therapies are often reserved until the depressive symptoms are significantly improved.

Depression is an illness. With the right therapy and the will of the person affected, depression can be conquered and life can be joyful and fulfilling once again.