What are the Alternative Treatments for Depression?

 Psychotherapy

• Individual psychotherapy can help patients focus on changes in thinking and behavior that occur in depression.
• It can also provide support, understanding and education. Patients may be seen alone, as a couple or family or in a group.
• Psychotherapy is an important treatment option, as some PD patients may not tolerate, respond fully, or want to take an antidepressant.
• It is often combined with antidepressant treatment.

Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)

• Another form of treatment for severe or non-responsive depression is electroconvulsive therapy, also known as shock therapy.
• Though people often think negatively about shock therapy, it is the most effective treatment available for severe depression, and it also temporarily improves motor symptoms in PD.
• Major drawbacks include: the time involved in getting the treatment, the need to undergo general anesthesia many times, and possible memory problems and/or confusion as a complication of treatment.

Exercise

• Exercise has been found to be a simple therapeutic approach for improving mood and depression.
• It can include walking, stretching, yoga, tai-chi and all basic forms of physical activity.

Non-Conventional Types of Therapy for Depression

• Light therapy
• Relaxation Techniques
• Massage Therapy
• Acupuncture
• Aromatherapy
• Meditation
• Music Therapy

Medical content reviewed by: Nina Browner, MD—Medical Director of the NPF Center of Excellence at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in North Carolina and by Fernando Pagan, MD—Medical Director of the NPF Center of Excellence at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C.

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