If you have bipolar disorder, getting the right amount of sleep at the right time of day is absolutely critical in achieving and maintaining mood stability. Good sleep at night clearly exerts mood-stabilizing benefits. This article addresses several strategies for improving mood stability in bipolar disorder and discusses the tradeoffs faced in regulating your activities and schedule.

Screening kids for depression (and sustained sadness) and connecting them with mental health services is an effective step in preventing suicide in youth. This article reviews recent research that supports this intervention and includes other data that shows this approach to be logical, strategic, and a high-yield use of suicide prevention funding.

7 million Christians in the US experience major depression each year. While attendance of religious services might be protective, it is not protective enough. This article discusses research on Christians with depression, the impact of stigma and how I calculated the number of depressed Christians.

Many people are not told what to expect when prescribed an antidepressant medication. Basic information, such as the dosing range, the goal of treatment, how side effects can be overcome and how long to stay on the medication, is frequently left out of a clinical encounter. This article outlines a methodical approach to antidepressant treatment for depression.

Many people with longstanding depression believe that they have tried every treatment out there. A detailed review of their history often reveals that they are mistaken and that there are several strategies that they have never tried. This article addresses what information is needed to make a well-informed decision about what treatment to try next and how a history of past treatments combined with a strategic, methodical approach can open up options to newer and potentially more effective treatments.

Rating scales for depression are being used routinely in primary care, but not all psychiatrists and therapists are using them. The use of depression rating scales shines a bright spotlight on your current mood and the progress you are making toward full freedom from depression. This article addresses how rating scales can help get you unstuck in your depression treatment.

When depression hits, it’s nice when the first treatment that you try works. On the other hand, depression that gets partially better only to worsen again is frustrating and demoralizing. Having a plan for treatment-resistant depression will get you better faster. This article outlines basic steps that are part of a larger plan for getting rid of your depression.

It has been definitively proven that transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is an effective treatment for treatment-resistant depression. The researchers in the Stanford SAINT study achieved better results in a shorter time, getting 90.5% of severely depressed patients to full freedom from depression.

It is important to know that medical conditions can cause depression or mimic the symptoms of depression. While dozens of medical conditions can contribute to depression, this article covers 10 of the most common. Knowing what these conditions are and screening for them can ensure better treatment and a speedier recovery.

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is the most exciting and promising development in the treatment of depression in the past 30 years. The effectiveness of TMS, a novel treatment that works when traditional treatments fail, is quickly establishing this therapy as the most important development since the discovery of Prozac for depression.

Some of the most exciting research on the neuroscience of depression has come about in the last 10 years. We have new models of depression that look at the activity of different regions of the brain as well as changes in neural circuitry which are present in depression. A better understanding of depression is already leading to more effective treatment.

Mental health stigma exists. Many people fear labels or how they will be viewed if those labels are applied to them. It's a real concern, but things are getting better. Consider the 2018 changes at a national level in the US allowing for treatment of symptoms rather than classified psychiatric diagnoses. That's one step in the right direction. Mental health parity is the next step needed.

A correct psychiatric diagnosis is critical to depression and anxiety getting better faster. This article includes a story about a person who had an incorrect psychiatric diagnosis throughout his lifetime, showing how the wrong diagnosis can lead to the wrong treatment. A thorough approach is one of the best means of obtaining a correct diagnosis and getting the right treatment.