PSYC 350 1st Edition Lecture 9 Outline of Last Lecture I Symptoms II Cases Outline of Current Lecture I Types II Approaches III Treatments IV Causes Current Lecture Seasonal Affective Disorder mood changes with the seasons same symptoms as MDD depressions falls from summer to fall and rises from winter to spring Premenstrual dysphoric disorder depression associated with the menstrual cycle in women very common some women cope with it better than others some argue it should be listed in the DSM Psychotherapy is interpersonal therapy where people get help in finding solutions The cognitive approach says that depression is due to incorrect beliefs about your self that stem from bad early experiences Early research supports this you ll feel down after watching a sad movie Cognitive styles the tendencies to blame yourself and expect that one negative event will lead to another Cognitive behavior therapy or CBT corrects beliefs and is effective in about 60 of patients CBT can change brain activity responsible for attention reward seeking and emotion monitoring CBT is most effective for mild to moderate depression The physiological approach says depression is due to underactivity in the brain structures responsible for mood low levels of neurotransmitters Norepinephrine and serotonin are the two hormones in the hypothalamus that cause depression when they are too low The hypothalamus controls sleep appetite sex and mood all of which impact depression level Thinking occurs in the frontal lobes which slows down when the nerve tracts don t pass enough serotonin These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute Tryptophan is converted into serotonin so it is encouraged to have a balanced tryptophan diet Antidepressant drugs help to increase serotonin levels but they take several weeks to work and people tend to stop taking them because they think they re defective Receptor sites take a while to be recharged Dopamine is the neurotransmitter in the pleasure center of the brain and regulates pleasure 60 of the brain is omega 3 fatty acids Omega 3 explains the link between depression and heart attacks more of it reduces depression and the risk of a heart attack Strokes in the left prefrontal cortex increase chance of prolonged depression There is a very high risk of depression if you have a family history of it Serotonin is released by the presynaptic neuron St John s Wort is an over the counter drug that allegedly treats depression Some say it s better because it is plant based but it s not that strong Tricyclists block the reuptake of serotonin and norepinephrine