Depression Counselling at One Point Medical

It is natural to feel unhappy or sad at times, as it is a normal response to failure, loss or some form of life stress – this is not classed as depression.

There is a difference between these occasional feelings and the prolonged mental illness of depression that can interfere with a person’s everyday activities. Feeling hopeless and miserable on a consistent basis is not normal.

Classified as a mood disorder, depression can be described as feelings of sadness, loss, or anger that affects the entire mind and body. As such it is difficult for an individual to lift themselves out of this depressive state and should be treated as a serious medical condition.

Superficial advice or comments like ‘Get over it’ are not helpful and if left untreated depression can continue for months or years. Professional treatment can often improve symptoms within a few weeks. One Point Medical doctors are trained in various mental health treatment modalities.

What can cause depression?

There are many theories as to what causes depression, none are definitive, but a number of things are linked to its development.

Depression usually results from recent life events such as unemployment, abuse, isolation, stress and a combination of other longer-term or personal factors such as personality, family history, serious illness or drug and alcohol problems.

Alternatively, depression can follow a single event such as an operation or childbirth and is more common in late adolescence, middle age and the years following retirement.

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What types of depression are there?

Classified as a mood disorder, depression affects everyone in different ways.
Types of depression include:

  • Dysthymia and Melancholic Depression
  • Adjustment Disorder
  • Major Depressive Disorder
  • Seasonal affective Disorder
  • Post-partum Depression
  • Bipolar Disorder
  • Psychotic Depression

What are some of the symptoms of depression?

As one of the most common illnesses in medicine, depression is often confused with other conditions.

Symptoms can be physical and mental and the classical notions of crying and sleeping may be absent.

Feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, anger, apathy, guilt, anxiety or worthlessness can be experienced as can continual tiredness, sleeping or eating problems, loss of libido, difficulty concentrating or making decisions. In addition to this, there may be severe issues with biological functions like sleep and appetite.

How does One Point Medical assess depression

Your One Point Medical doctor will require you to complete a Loffty self-assessment online. Loffty is the world’s most comprehensive mental health self-assessment tool that helps psychologists, GPs and other mental health specialists diagnose, treat and monitor depression more effectively. Loffty generates more detailed information, more quickly to help our GPs make more accurate and more timely diagnoses. They can then make better informed treatment decisions which lead to you getting better, faster.

Your One Point Medical doctor will also take a complete medical history to check for other conditions. A full life history will include questions about your childhood, adolescence, drug & alcohol, relationships, education, work, forensic and family history. An appropriate physical examination, including blood pressure, weight and height will also be completed.

After this a differential diagnosis will be formulated and may be tested with the use of investigations which could include blood and urine tests, quantum EEG or functional brain imaging (SPECT scan).

A Loffty mental health treatment plan is then prepared by your doctor including the relevant psychiatric symptoms, possible diagnoses, graphed severity ratings, aims and goals of treatment, patient responsibilities and modes of treatment.

The diagnosis will be confirmed with a second opinion from a specialist psychiatrist who has expertise in attention problems.

A second meeting will then discuss which modes of treatment which may be suitable. These will include possible referral to a psychologist with expertise in attention problems, possible referral to a drug & alcohol service, discussion about exercise, diet and possible supplements. Detailed discussion about medication including expected positive effects, side effects, interactions, housekeeping and travel. Discussion will also focus on the neuroanatomy and patho-physiology of Depression and how the patient has come to experience the problems that they have encountered in their life and how treatment will assist in turning these problems around.

Your doctor will carefully monitor your response to treatment by meeting, initially in one to two weeks, then monthly and finally three monthly on an ongoing basis to assist in making sure you get the very best outcomes possible. Our follow-up process will include repeat Loffty self-assessments to assess the clinical response and modification of treatment if required. The specialist psychiatrist will review the response in twelve months and thereafter every two years but will be on hand as part of the team to offer assistance at any time as required.

Category A rating

One Point Medical has once again received a category A rating on accreditation, demonstrating its commitment to quality and safety within the practice.

More information can be found here.