Recovery
The idea of “recovery” is not a new concept, people have always got better from depression, but it is only recently that the mental health field has started paying attention to how people with conditions such as depression recover.
Work and research in other countries has already shown that expectation of recovery among individuals and professionals working with them can impact strongly on the person’s prospects for recovery and their life. . Believing you can recover is important – depression is a very treatable illness.
Recovery extends to medical treatment but also to acceptance by family and friends, employers, teachers and the wider community. The attitudes of others, whether close to you or not can make a negative or positive impact on your recovery.
What does recovery mean to you?
Do you believe you can, or you have recovered from depression? Recovery is an individual journey
- For one person it may mean being able to visit the corner shop on their own
- For another it might mean no longer needing any treatment, or the use of antidepressants.
- For someone else it might mean being able to sleep at night.
- For another it might mean working 35 hours a week and having a busy social life
What an individual considers to be “recovery” could depend on how long, difficult and serious their personal struggle through depression has been. Your concept of recovery may change. Somebody who used to think recovery would be the ability to get up in the morning before noon, may decide after acheiving this, that they can recover further and aim to get a voluntary job. It is also possible to have partial recovery, for example to go back to work, but to continue to have counselling or attend a Depression Alliance Scotland self-help group.
The meaning of recovery from depression for families/friends
We often hear from carers who want to know what they can do best to help their loved one who has depression.. Depression can make people very negative about themselves, others and even the world around them; they may forget this is the depression talking and not the person they care about. Caring for someone with depression can be frustrating, but knowing the fact that recovery is more than likely is important to a carer when he or she considers their future relationship with their relative or partner.
It is important that people hear the facts. Depression is very treatable and the great majority will recover.
Useful websites
Scottish Recovery Network http://www.scottishrecovery.net The Scottish Recovery Network aims to engage communities across Scotland in debate on how best to promote and support recovery from long-term mental health problems.