Caring For Someone With Depression

Caring for & Helping People with Depression

If a loved one or friend is suffering from depression, you know how serious depression can be. You’ve seen how challenging it can sometimes be to talk to them about how they are feeling. And you know how important it is to help them get the treatment they need to start living a more fulfilling life.

Caring for someone with depression requires empathy and patience. It also requires that you support them and listen to them while also encouraging them to seek out the help they need to find remission.

It’s important to be compassionate and understanding, but it’s also important to be persistent.

Cara and Her Husband

Your loved one is not alone and neither are you.

For more information on NeuroStar Advanced Therapy, download our free brochure on how NeuroStar may be able to help someone you care about find relief from the symptoms of depression.

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How Do I Know if Someone is Depressed?

Depression is not always easy to recognize in others. While everyone is different, the following are general symptoms of depression:

  • Depressed Mood: Severe sadness that may last from several days to several weeks.
  • Lack of Interest: No longer finding joy in things they used to love.
  • Reduced Energy: Unusual and lasting bouts of fatigue.
  • Lack of Concentration: A struggle to focus or make decisions.
  • Reduced Self-Esteem: A lack of confidence in themselves and their decisions.
  • Ideas of Guilt and Unworthiness: May include talk of being useless or hating themselves.
  • Change in Sleep Habits: May include insomnia or oversleeping.
  • Change in Eating Habits, Weight Loss/Gain: May include loss of appetite or overeating.
  • Ideas of Self-Harm: Talk of hurting oneself.

How Can I Help?

If you recognize these symptoms in someone you care for, it’s important that you help them find treatment for depression.

It may be a difficult topic to approach, but it is key that you reach out and offer to help them find treatment that works for them. Don’t try to offer your own ideas on how to “feel better” or “get over it.” Depression is a serious condition and requires professional treatment.

What Treatments are Available?

Although antidepressant medications can be effective for some patients, they do not work for everyone, and can also include unwanted side effects.

For patients who aren’t finding the results they need from antidepressants, non-drug, non-invasive treatments are available, including NeuroStar® Advanced Therapy, which uses short magnetic pulses to stimulate nerve cells in the area of the brain that controls mood.1,14,15

These pulses, administered through a small coil placed on the patient’s head, can have a lasting effect on the brain’s neurotransmitter levels.1,14,15

Patient Receiving a Consultation from a Doctor

Find a NeuroStar Doctor Near You

NeuroStar is a breakthrough depression treatment for patients who aren’t satisfied with the results they’ve had with antidepressants. If someone you care for fits this profile, and you’re interested in learning more, use our Doctor Locator to get in touch with a doctor near you who specializes in NeuroStar Advanced Therapy.

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