Depression is one of the most common mental illnesses that people suffer from. It is a condition that significantly affects the mood of the sufferer and can have a great impact on their lives. The level of depression can range from mild to severe and this level will determine the affects it has on the person. Chronic depression occurs when a person has suffered from the symptoms for more than 2 years. The main symptoms of depression are:

• Sleep disturbances -- at least 90% of people with depression have either insomnia (sleeplessness) or hypersomnia (excessive sleeping).
• Significant change in appetite (often resulting in either weight loss or weight gain)
• Fatigue and loss of energy
• Feelings of worthlessness, self-hate, and inappropriate guilt
• Extreme difficulty concentrating
• Either agitation, restlessness, and irritability or inactivity and withdrawal
• Recurring thoughts of death or suicide
• Feelings of hopelessness

People who suffer from depression will normally be treated with psychotherapy or drugs or a combination of both. There are also a number of alternative therapies that can really help with depression and so should be considered. On important lifestyle change people can make is to take some exercise as this has been shown to have a significant impact on reducing the symptoms of depression.

Some of the things you can consider are dietary changes as making sure you have all the correct nutrients on board can help lift the mood. In addition some people do not like taking medication and so can consider herbal remedies such as St. John’s Wart although these may take longer to work than conventional medicines. Some homeopathic remedies could be effective as well although there is no scientific evidence to back this up.

A number of studies have shown that acupuncture can be beneficial to lift the symptoms on people with mild depression. In addition, in a number of studies electro-acupuncture has shown to be as effective as a number of medications in treating depression. In addition therapies that reduce stress such as aromatherapy, massage, yoga and meditation can help to relieve the symptoms particularly in people with mild depression.