With the increasing incidence of depression and society’s gradual recognition of the disease, people’s acceptance of depression treatment mainly through medication has increased. For patients taking medication, their greatest concern comes from:
Patient: Doctor, hello, I have had depression for a long time. How should I take the medication or should I stop taking it?
Patient: When can I stop taking the medication?
Dr. Zhu Qingmei: Hello, how long have you been sick?
Dr. Zhu Qingmei: For medication treatment, the main purpose is to fully maintain treatment and prevent the recurrence of depression.
Dr. Zhu Qingmei: Currently, the treatment for depression advocates for treating the entire disease course in three stages.
Dr. Zhu Qingmei: Since I am not sure which stage you are in right now, I recommend that you follow the doctor’s instructions and have regular follow-ups.
Patient: Can you explain to me, what are these three stages?
Dr. Zhu Qingmei: Sure, but accurate stage determination still needs to be confirmed through a face-to-face consultation. I can roughly explain it to you!
1) Acute phase treatment: The main goal is to eliminate symptoms, and this stage should last for 1-3 months;
2) Consolidation phase treatment: The goal is to prevent symptom relapse, lasting at least 4-6 months;
3) Maintenance phase treatment: The goal is to prevent symptom recurrence.
Reports indicate that after the first onset of depression, the recurrence rate is 50%, 75% for the second time, and 100% for the third time. Therefore, depression patients need maintenance treatment to prevent relapse.
Patient: I see! I am also unsure about which stage I am in
Patient: Also, I don’t know why, even though I took the medication properly before, it didn’t have much effect, and then I kept forgetting to take the medication
Dr. Zhu Qingmei: Medication should not be adjusted without authorization, as it will have a significant impact on the recovery of the condition!
Patient: Alright… so I should continue taking the medication
Dr. Zhu Qingmei: Yes, I suggest you go back to your doctor for a follow-up to confirm the next treatment plan
Patient: Thank you so much~~
Dr. Zhu Qingmei: You’re welcome
In fact, regarding the treatment duration for patients, there is currently no unified answer. This needs to be confirmed through follow-up to determine the development of each person’s condition, in order to judge the adjustment of the medication taken by the patients:
Generally,
However, there is no need to worry, in general, clinical doctors will make judgments on the duration of medication based on the actual conditions of the patient, severity, age of onset, and the patient’s own thoughts, and so on!
After patients have received the third stage of treatment, maintenance treatment, and under the premise of stable condition, doctors will allow patients to slowly reduce the dosage of medication, or even stop medication.
Although the situation of patients and the medications they take may vary, there are still general principles to follow throughout the treatment process.
