• 1What Is Depression? (VIDEO)
  • 2Treating Depression
  • 3What Makes You Unique?
  • 4Your Brain Is Electric
  • 5Depression and Neurotransmitters
  • 6Emotions and Your Brain
  • 7Losing Your Balance
  • 8Forms of Depression
  • 9Symptoms and Diagnosis
  • 10Causes of Depression
  • 11Depression and Pain
  • 12Depression Changes the Brain
  • 13The Depression Cascade
  • 14Finding Balance
  • 15Talk Therapy
  • 16Movement as Medicine
  • 17Managing Stress and Making Choices
  • 18Food for a Better Mood
  • 19Get Some Sleep
  • 20Treatment: Antidepressants
  • 21Treatment: ECT and VNS
  • 22There Is Hope
CHAPTER 15

Talk Therapy

PART 1

How Well Does Talk Therapy Work?

History Moment
The Water Cure
Psychotherapy (also known as cognitive therapy or talk therapy) can in many cases work as well as, or better than, medications, and with fewer side effects. For many patients, psychotherapy can be a first-choice treatment option. For others, a combination of medication and psychotherapy is indicated. Studies have shown that psychotherapy can even cause changes in brain function similar to those produced by pharmacologic therapy.

Some types of talk therapy, such as cognitive behavioral therapy or interpersonal psychotherapy, are goal oriented. They help people with depression to focus on what's going on their lives in the here and now. This is different from classical psychotherapy, which may involve an extensive, long-term exploration of a person's past. Goal-oriented forms of therapy can help to address particular depressed feelings a person has, or to adjust a negative pattern of thinking. These brief and focused psychotherapies are strongly evidence based and appear to be highly effective for the treatment of depression.
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