Research Comparison Paper -- Health, Diseases, Depression

INTRODUCTION Overview Depression is when a person’s feelings of sadness and worthlessness control how they handle daily activities and relationships (National Institute of Mental Health 2009). This illness is something that most people need to be treated for (National Institute of Mental Health 2009). In the study Quality of Life in Depression, several patients are looked at to see what their quality of life is with depression. One of the aspects that the study found about depression is that even after people are treated for depression the person may still ridding themselves of the illness completely (Ay-Woan et al 2005). With depression being so prevalent in society today there is a need for more treatments. There are many different types of treatments offered to people with this illness. Since not every treatment works for everyone there is a need for a variety of solutions. Some of the treatments involve pharmaceutical drugs and others involve psychological treatment. There has controversy as to which treatment works better. This paper compares one type of pharmaceutical treatment and one psychological treatment. Background In order to explain the different treatments there needs to be some key terms defined. First, a neurotransmitter is a â€Å"chemical by which a nerve cell communicates with another nerve cell or with a muscle† (Collins English Dictionary 2009). This is important because this is affected by serotonin. Serotonin is a chemical in the brain that helps maintain sleeping, eating, and mood patterns (Carlson 2001). This chemical is transported by neurotransmitters in the brain. If a person’s serotonin levels are down it can disrupt their daily activities. Serotonin levels are not the only causes of depression. Fluo... ...ent people. If the author had to choose, it would have to be the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy because it has more positive aspects then Prozac. When looking closely at both treatments Prozac has many downfalls. With Prozac there are many side effects to taking the pharmaceutical drug. There is a long list of the different ways Prozac can negatively affect the human body. Drowsiness, nausea, nervousness, skin rashes, sexual dysfunction, and insomnia can all be avoided if a person would not take them. There is still the argument that people cannot change the chemicals in their brain with just therapy. The author believes that if a person can help taking the medications, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy would be a much better, safer choice. The only side effect to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is the treatment not working and all the person would lose is there time.