A guide to what works for depression Other sources of support

Depression and anxiety can go on for months, even years, if left untreated, and can have many negative effects on a person's life.

Whatever treatments are used, they are best done under the supervision of a GP or mental health professional. If you have taken the first step and enlisted the help of your GP or another health professional, there are additional things you might like to try to get your recovery underway.

Just remember that recovery can take time, and just as no two people are the same, neither are their recoveries.

Family and friends

Family members and friends play an important role in a person's recovery. They can offer support,

understanding and help. People with depression and anxiety often don't feel like socialising, but spending time alone can make a person feel cut off from the world, which makes it harder to recover. That's why it's important for them to take part in activities with family members and close friends, and to accept social invitations, even though it's the last thing they may want to do. Staying connected with people helps increase levels of wellbeing, confidence and the chance to participate in physical activities.

Exercise

A number of studies have found that exercise is a good way to help prevent or manage mild to moderate depression and anxiety. Research shows that keeping active can help lift mood, improve sleep, increase energy levels, help block negative thoughts and/or distract people from daily worries, increase opportunities to socialise, and generally increase wellbeing. Exercise may also change levels of chemicals in the brain, such as serotonin, endorphins and stress hormones.

Diet

Food can play a vital role in maintaining mental health as well as physical health. In general, eating a nourishing diet gives people an overall sense of wellbeing. There are also some specific nutritional strategies that can help improve mood, maintain healthy brain functioning and help people with depression and anxiety. 

Support groups and online forums

Mutual support groups for people with depression and anxiety are conducted by people who have experienced similar problems. These groups can provide an opportunity to connect with others, share experiences and find new ways to deal with difficulties. Contact your local community health centre or the mental health association/foundation in your state or territory to find your nearest group, or try searching online.

Some people prefer to share their stories and information, or seek and offer support, via online forums. You can visit the Australian Government's mindhealthconnect website to find trusted communities, or join beyondblue's online community.

Relaxation training

Relaxation training is used as a treatment for anxiety. Because anxiety can lead to depression, it may reduce depression as well. People with anxiety are thought to have tense muscles. As relaxation training helps to relax muscles, it may also help to reduce anxious thoughts and behaviours. Relaxation training may also help people feel as if they have more control of their anxiety.

There are several different types of relaxation training. The most common one is progressive muscle relaxation. This teaches a person to relax voluntarily by tensing and relaxing specific groups of muscles. Another type of relaxation training involves thinking of relaxing scenes or places. Relaxation training can be learned from a professional or done as self-help. Recorded instructions are available for free on the internet or they can be bought on CD and/or MP3.

E-therapies

E-therapies, also known as online therapies or computer-aided psychological therapy, can be just as effective as face-to-face services for people with mild to moderate anxiety and depression.

Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) and behaviour therapy are helpful for anxiety and depression when delivered by a professional. The structured nature of these treatments means they are also well suited to being delivered electronically.

Most e-therapies teach people to identify and change patterns of thinking and behaviour that might be keeping them from overcoming their anxiety or depression. An individual works through the program by themselves, and although e-therapies can be used with or without help from a professional, most programs do involve some form of support from a therapist. This can be via phone, email, text or instant messaging, and will help the person to successfully apply their newly learnt skills to everyday life.

This online mode of delivery has several advantages. It:

• is easy to access
• can be done from home
• can be of particular benefit for people in rural and remote areas
• can be provided in many cases without having to visit a doctor.

You can visit the Australian Government's mindhealthconnect website to find a library of online programs.

Other approaches

It's not uncommon for people with depression or anxiety to try to manage the illness themselves. It's important to know that while there are other non-medical or alternative treatment approaches available, these may differ in effectiveness. Some non-medical treatments have undergone scientific testing and there's no harm in trying them if the depression or anxiety is not severe or life threatening.

The beyondblue booklets, A guide to what works for depression, A guide to what works for anxiety and A guide to what works for depression in young people (links below), provide a summary of what the scientific evidence says about each treatment.

However, when a treatment is shown to have some effect in research, this does not mean it is available, used in clinical practice, will be recommended or will work equally well for every person. There is no substitute for the advice of a mental health practitioner, who can advise on the treatment options available. The best approach is to try a treatment that works for most people and that you are comfortable with. If you do not recover quickly enough, or experience problems with the treatment, then try another.