What is the most effective treatment for dysthymia?

What is the most effective treatment for dysthymia?

COMBINATION PSYCHOTHERAPY AND MEDICATION Treatment Summary: Depression-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) or Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) and antidepressant medication have proven to be most successful for dysthymia. This combination targets the depressive symptoms and social functioning.

How do you treat someone with dysthymia?

How is dysthymia treated?

1. Medicine. Many different medicines are available to treat depression. It often takes 4 to 6 weeks for anti-depressants to have a full effect.
2. Therapy. This is most often cognitive behavioral or interpersonal therapy. It focuses on changing distorted views of yourself and your environment.

Does dysthymia respond to medication?

Subaffective dysthymics tend to respond to antidepressant medication and often have a family history of mood disorder, whereas character-spectrum dysthymics respond less well to medications and more often report a major loss as well as family history of substance abuse.

What is the best strategy in treating major depressive disorder and persistent depressive disorder?

The treatment of persistent depressive disorder tends to be most effective when it includes both medication treatment and several weeks of talk therapy (psychotherapy).

Is dysthymia a serious mental illness?

Dysthymia is a serious disorder. It is not “minor” depression, and it is not a condition intermediate between severe clinical depression and depression in the casual colloquial sense. In some cases it is more disabling than major depression.

How long does it take to treat dysthymia?

In a 10-year follow-up study of persons with dysthymia, 73.9% showed recovery from dysthymic disorder, with a median time to recovery of 52 months, but the estimated risk of relapse into another period of chronic depression including dysthymia was 71.4%, most commonly within three years [10].

How long does it take to diagnose dysthymia?

For a diagnosis, adults must have symptoms of PDD nearly every day for 2 or more years . For children or teens, they must experience a depressed mood or irritability most of the day, nearly every day, for at least 1 year. Your doctor will ask you certain questions to assess your current mental and emotional state.

What is the best antidepressant for dysthymia?

Antidepressants recommended for this disorder are the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs such as fluoxetine), serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs such as venlafaxine), mirtazapine and bupropion. Side effects vary among these choices.