Chicago Mind Solutions

Chicago area neurofeedback and eeg therapy

Depression Treatment

Depression is more than just “feeling sad.” It’s a condition that involves the physical health of a patient as well as their emotional attitude.  It can be manifested in different forms and is caused by a wide range of things, including genetics, environment, alterations in biochemistry, or an illness of mind or body.

Symptoms

People who suffer from depression may experience some or all of the following symptoms:

  • Trouble sleeping or excessive sleeping
  • A dramatic change in appetite, often with weight gain or loss
  • Fatigue and lack of energy
  • Feelings of worthlessness, self-hate, and inappropriate guilt
  • Extreme difficulty concentrating
  • Agitation, restlessness, and irritability
  • Inactivity and withdrawal from usual activities
  • Feelings of hopelessness and helplessness
  • Recurring thoughts of death or suicide

Low self-esteem is a common complaint of depressed adults. They find that activities they used to enjoy no longer give them pleasure and they sometimes are prone to sudden, unprovoked bouts of anger. Children who are depressed may act out and throw tantrums. They may also sleep too much or not enough. This, in turn, makes it harder for them to focus on schoolwork or anything else and may be the first indication of a problem.

How Neurofeedback Treats Depression

Neurofeedback is a form of biofeedback that allows patients to optimize their own brain activity. Generally, depressed people tend to have slower brain waves than those who are not depressed; in some cases, brain waves are sped up. With neurofeedback, patients can learn to change their brain waves to more effective patterns.

Of course, everyone experiences depression differently. Some patients respond well to traditional psychotherapy without taking anti-depressants. Others need drugs to alter their neurotransmitter activity enough so they can engage in therapy.  Still others experience minimal relief from medication. Neurofeedback can be used to treat depression either alone or in combination with whatever treatment a patient is currently receiving. Indeed, many patients find that neurofeedback significantly enhances these other treatments in a synergistic manner.  And it can be used whether the patient’s depression is due to an emotional trauma, physical injury, or just about any other reason.