According to the statistics shared by the DBSA (Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance):
- Nearly 17.3 million adults in the US are affected by major depressive disorder. It is around 7.1 percent of the population.
- Around 7 million seniors (aged above 65) have depression.
- Depression is a leading contributor to the global disease burden because research shows that depression mostly co-occurs with other medical conditions and illnesses.
So, if you are dealing with depression, you should know you’re not alone. Millions of people across all age groups are battling with some form of depression. Medication is one of the best ways to fight this mood disorder. Depression causes persistent feelings of loss or sadness. It can affect your sleep, eating habits, memory, thinking power, and motivation.
Antidepressants are prescription medications that are given to patients to treat depression and symptoms associated with it, like obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety. Read on to learn more about why you should use medication for depressants.
How Can Medication for Depression Help?
The role of antidepressants in treating depression and its symptoms is all-powerful. It works by balancing brain chemicals like neurotransmitters that affect emotions and mood. They help improve the mood and give patients the boost they require to overcome depression. Antidepressants help better regulate mood and behavior. They affect neurotransmission involving norepinephrine and serotonin, and also dopamine.
Furthermore, antidepressants also induce neuroplasticity. It is a process that helps the brain to change its structure by either weakening or strengthening connections between neurons (the brain cells).
Though antidepressants are highly-effective prescription medication for depression treatment, it takes at least six months before you see signs of improvement in your behavior and mood. Therefore, once you are on medication, don’t skip or stop your treatment because of the cost of these medications. Instead, benefit from our patient assistance programs for medications. These PAPs are ideal for those individuals who are either underinsured or uninsured and can’t afford to buy prescription medication.
Once you enroll in our prescription assistance program, you can get shop for your medication as needed for a free or little charge. Remember that if the antidepressant doesn’t work, you must consult your doctor instead of stopping your treatment. It is because if one antidepressant doesn’t work, it is likely that another type will. Statistics show that almost 60 percent of individuals feel better with their first medicine intake. However, those who don’t may feel the mood and behavior improvement when given one or more medications.
So, if you have depression, consult your doctor for prescription medication. You can contact us to join our patient assistance programs for medications without any hassle. We assist both under and uninsured patients with prescription medication services. Click to get started now.