What Is Anti Depression

What Is Anti Depression

By Mosh
Treat Mental Health
5 min read
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Key Takeaways

Anti depression refers to anti-depressants which are used to treat depression. They must be prescribed by a doctor, who recommends the dosage and type given. Anti-depressants can be an extremely effective method of reducing the symptoms of depression and can help you break free from unhealthy coping mechanisms, change your mindset, and help you cope with problems you may face in the future. To address any concerns that you may have, it is advisable to consult with a  mental health professional to receive proper advice and treatment depending on your specific situation.

With mental health becoming a topic of interest today, you have probably wondered, ‘What is anti depression?’ With up to 25% of Australian men having experienced a diagnosed mental health disorder in their lifetime, the most common being depression,[1] it is only natural to be curious about possible medication for depression and anxiety. 

Here at Mosh, we want to help demystify and destigmatise depression and its treatment. Let us start by talking about ‘anti depression’.

The phrase ‘anti depression’ in ‘What is anti depression?’ actually refers to antidepressants, which are medications used to treat clinical depression. What is anti depression medicine? Antidepressant drugs are usually taken in tablet form, and your dosage is recommended by a doctor. 

To best treat symptoms of depression, antidepressants usually need to be taken for one to two weeks without missing any doses. Treatments for depression involving courses of antidepressants usually take six months to complete.[2] These figures are variable, as the length of a patient’s treatment course is dependent on the severity of depression and how well they respond to medication.

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How does anti depression medication help?

If you have typed in ‘what is anti depression’, ‘how to stop depression’, or ‘How To Know If You Have Depression’, then you’re probably wondering, ‘What do anti depression meds do, anyway?’ 

It is not entirely clear how antidepressants work. However, it is the belief of experts that chemical imbalances in the brain’s neurotransmitters can cause depression. When chemicals such as serotonin run low, signals cannot be properly passed on. The goal of antidepressants is to increase the availability of such chemicals.[3] 

What are the different types of antidepressant meds?

There are a wide variety of antidepressants currently available in Australia. Listed below are some of them:[5]

  • Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) are typically the most commonly prescribed antidepressants. They block the reabsorption of the neurotransmitter serotonin, which plays a big role in your mood, sleep, and digestion. SSRIs are also used to treat a number of mental health conditions like obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).[6]
  • Serotonin and Noradrenaline Reuptake Inhibitors (SNRIs) are responsible for blocking the reabsorption of not only serotonin, but also noradrenaline(also known as norepinephrine). Noradrenaline plays a role in your body’s acute stress (‘fight-or-flight’) response.[7]
  • Reverse Inhibitors of MonoAmine Oxidase (RIMAs) inhibit the breakdown of serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine. Dopamine is responsible for how we feel satisfied, pleasured, and motivated.[8]

How do antidepressants make you feel?

If you want to know how to stop being depressed and are interested in taking medications, it’s best to be aware of the possible side effects of taking SSRIs and SNRIs. These include feelings of agitation, loss of appetite, and reduced sex drive.[9] These usually go away after a few weeks, but there are some cases of side effects that do not go away. 

However tempted one might be to reduce the dosage of their antidepressant or stop taking antidepressants entirely, this should only be done with the advice and supervision of their doctor.

The effects of antidepressant medication have allowed those living with depression to become productive at work, rekindle their social relationships, and improve their sense of self-worth.

Is therapy also effective for treating depression?

Searching terms like ‘what is anti depression’, ‘How To Overcome Depression’, and ‘How Do You Know If You Have Depression’ may have led you to another method for the management of depression, and that is one-on-one therapy.

While antidepressants help in the treatment of depression, they can be combined with psychological treatments or talking therapies. Talking about your depression with a trained mental health professional can help you break free from unhealthy coping mechanisms, change your mindset, and help you cope with problems you may face in the future.

Mental health can be tough to talk about. That is why we have made it our goal to connect you with doctors who understand what you are going through. 

We encourage you to take that initial step towards bettering your mental health. Once you are ready, just fill out a simple online questionnaire here on our website, which allows us to get to know you better. If it is determined that further treatment is suitable for your condition, then a Mosh doctor will reach out within twenty-four hours.

This is where you can go ahead and ask your AHPRA-registered doctor about concerns like ‘how to treat depression’, ‘what is anti depression’, and ‘what does depression mean’. 

It is also here that your doctor will lay out their recommended treatment plan for you. Your personalised treatment plan may include prescription medication, one-on-one online therapy sessions, or a combination of both. 

Our Mosh doctors operate 100% independently and are not commission-based. That means they will only ever present you with a treatment plan that genuinely suits your needs.

Depression can be overwhelming, but know that we are here to help. Find out more about your options by contacting us today.

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