Table of Contents
Introduction
Depression is a devastating illness. It robs people of their energy, their sleep, their memory, their concentration, their vitality, their joy, their ability to love and work and play, andsometimeseven their will to live. As a clinical psychologist, Ive worked with hundreds of patients to help heal depressions debilitating effects, so I will never underestimate this treacherous foe. From the day I first walked onto a psychiatric unit at Duke Medical Center two decades ago, Ive devoted my career to fighting the disorder: I know it far too well to make any blanket promises of a one-size-fits-all cure.
Yet heres what I can say with complete confidence: Depression is beatable. And the six-step program outlined in The Depression Cure is the most promising treatment for depression Ive ever witnessed in my years of clinical research and practice. Admittedly, this is a bold claimone I never would have imagined making when I began developing the program a few years ago. But its based on three important observations:
The program Therapeutic Lifestyle Change (TLC)has proven remarkably effective in a large treatment study at my university. Patients were randomly assigned to receive either TLC or treatment-as-usual in the community (mostly medication), and fewer than 25% of those in community-based treatment got better. But the response rate among TLC patients was over three times higher. In fact, every single patient who put the full program into practice got better , even though most had already failed to get well on antidepressant medications.
All six components of the TLC programomega-3 fatty acids, engaging activity, physical exercise, sunlight exposure, social connection, and enhanced sleephave antidepressant properties. We know this from mountains of published research. But TLC is the only approach that combines these separate elements into an integrated packagea comprehensive, step-by-step program thats more potent than any single component used on its own.
Most important, TLC addresses the modern depression epidemic at its source: the fact that human beings were never designed for the poorly nourished, sedentary, indoor, sleep-deprived, socially isolated, frenzied pace of twenty-first-century life . The program provides a long-overdue, common sense remedy for a contemporary American lifestyle thats drifted dangerously off course.
In recent years, Ive been invited to speak with thousands of peoplepatients, therapists, psychiatrists, students, and many othersabout this lifestyle-based approach to healing depression. The question Im most frequently asked is: Who might benefit from the program?
My reply: Everyone. This usually draws some laughter, as most people think Im jokinga bit of ironic, self-mocking exaggeration. But Im actually quite serious. At least four groups of people can benefit from the TLC program, and together they include just about everyone.
The program was initially designed to help those suffering from clinical depressionwhether or not theyre already receiving some other form of treatment. TLC is highly effective when used on its own, but the program can also be combined with antidepressant medication or traditional psychotherapy.
Then again, you dont have to be diagnosed with full-blown depression to benefit from TLC. The protocol can also help those who are simply feeling blue or fighting milder symptoms of the disorder.
Likewise, the program offers protection to anyone who wants to minimize the risk of depression in the future.
A few years ago, psychologist Harriet Lernerthe bestselling author of influential books like The Dance of Anger observed something else about the TLC program that I had never considered: Each step involves something thats good for us, no matter how well we may be doing already. As Harriet put it, Your program isnt just about depression. Its something everyone can use to their benefit.
Shes right, of course. Theres a wealth of research on the physical and psychological benefits of the programs core elements: weight loss, increased energy, lower blood pressure, improved cardiac health, better immune function, reduced inflammation, greater mental clarity, and an enhanced sense of well-being. These are treatment side effects worth signing up for, and they represent another important reason for embracing the TLC program.
Despite the treatments beneficial effects, its still advisable to get a physical exam before you start putting the protocol into practice. In my own clinical research at the University of Kansas, I dont let anyone begin the full program until theyve first seen a doctor. This policy may surprise you, but its based on sound reasoning. For one thing, its always a good idea to check with a physician before embarking on a new exercise program. The same goes for taking high-dose nutritional supplements or increasing sun exposure. Since these are all core elements of the TLC program, its important to get your doctors okay before you begin.
In addition, depression can be triggered by many common medical conditionsdiabetes, sleep apnea, thyroid disorder, heart disease, chronic infection, and hormonal imbalance, to name a fewand the disorder can be very difficult to treat effectively until such underlying medical problems are addressed. Finally, several drugs carry the potential to cause depression (ironically, even some common psychiatric drugs), and your doctor can help you consider this possibility, as well.
In the chapters that follow, Ill describe the Therapeutic Lifestyle Change program in clear, step-by-step detail. And Ill share countless stories of those whove used the program to overcome depression and find their way to lasting recovery. My hope is that by putting TLC into practice in your own lifeone step at a timeyou, too, will begin living the depression cure.
PART ONE
UNDERSTANDING DEPRESSION
The Epidemic and the Cure
I dont know whats wrong with me. All I want to do is close my eyes and never have to wake up again. Its like my whole life is slipping away, and theres nothing I can do about it. Everybody keeps telling me I just need to snap out of it. Dont they know how cruel that is? I mean, do they think I want to be like this? Sometimes I just start crying and I dont even know what Im crying about. People stare at me like Im crazy, like: Look at that poor guy. That poor, pathetic... Phils voice trailed off as he slumped forward in his chair and cradled his head in his hands. He fixed his gaze on the office floor and whispered, Im sorry. He repeated the phrase over and over, like a mantra.
Even though I was all too familiar with the devastating effect of depression, I still found it difficult to picture what Phil had been like just a few months earlier, before his illness struck. Phils wife, who phoned to set up his first appointment, described him as a confident, fun-loving guy. He was someone who ran a successful business, enjoyed a strong marriage, and adored his two kids. His wife said, You would have looked at Phil and thought, Heres a guy who has it all. And yet there he was in my office, struck down by depression in the prime of his life. Over the span of a few short months, he had lost his energy, his memory, his sex drive, his confidence, his ability to sleep through the night, and his concentration. He could no longer function effectively at work. He had completely withdrawn from his friends and his family. Lately, he had even lost his will to live.