Depression

The depths of despair you can feel when suffering from depression are hard to appreciate unless you’ve experienced them. The highly skilled, compassionate mental health professionals at the Rein Center in Iowa City, Iowa, understand how depression can affect you. They use established treatments and innovative new techniques to help you overcome even the most severe depression. Call the Rein Center or book an in-person or telehealth appointment online today to receive insightful and supportive depression treatment.

What is depression?

Depression (major depressive disorder) is a disabling psychiatric disorder that affects more people than any other mental health condition. It causes a significant decline in mood, resulting in persistent negative thoughts such as hopelessness, self-loathing, worthlessness, and immense sadness.

You can’t simply cheer yourself up or snap out of your low mood when you have depression — it goes far deeper than the occasional attack of the blues. Your thought processes change, you interpret communications and interactions differently, and nothing in your life brings you joy.

Without treatment, depression can worsen to the point people become suicidal. Their despair is so profound that they believe death is the only solution to ending the pain. Even if your depression reaches this crisis point, you can recover with expert treatment and support.

Why do I have depression?

Depression has no single, easily identifiable cause — many things can contribute to its development. You’re more likely to experience depression if other close family members have mental health problems, so there’s likely a genetic link. But that’s not the whole story.

Depression often begins or worsens in response to a stressful or traumatic event, such as losing a loved one, relationship breakdowns, job loss, and other life transitions. Even positive experiences can trigger depression sometimes, most notably postpartum depression after childbirth. You might become depressed when chronically ill or suffering from constant pain.

A common thread that often links patients with depression is their brains’ chemical composition. Neurotransmitter chemicals enable the brain cells (neurons) to communicate, creating links called synapses. If you lack neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine, your brain can’t form connections in its mood regulation center.

It could be that life events alter your brain chemistry, so you lose neurotransmitters and become depressed. Or you may lose the neurotransmitters first, explaining why depression sometimes appears for no apparent reason.

How is depression treated?

Treating depression requires considerable expertise, as it can be a challenging problem to overcome. The experienced mental health professionals at the Rein Center take an integrative approach, combining traditional methods with complementary therapies to deliver comprehensive, holistic treatment.

Following an initial psychological assessment, each patient receives a personalized treatment plan that could include:

• Integrative psychology
• Individual psychotherapy
• Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)
• Antidepressant medications
• Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR)
• Ketamine treatment
• Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy
• Mind-body wellness
• Yoga and meditation
• Medication management

Antidepressants and ketamine help adjust the neurotransmitter levels in your brain and increase your receptiveness to psychotherapy.

To find out how the Rein Center’s treatments can relieve your depression, call the office or book an in-person or telehealth appointment online today.