Behavioral Activation for Depression

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Behavioral Activation

• Overcoming Depression

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Why do people become depressed?

• What are some theories?

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• Roughly 25 of the US population will experience
  depression in their lifetime.
• If you have experienced one episode of
  depression, you are likely to have another, or to
  become chronically depressed.

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Increasing rates of Depression

• Biological explanations are not sufficient to
  account for the vast increase in depression over
  the past 50 years.
• Incidence of depression has tripled since World
  War II.

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Why has depression increased?

• What are your theories about why depression has
  increased so dramatically?

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Contextual changewhen too many changes lead to
depression
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Is Depression an illness?

• Thinking of depression as an illness can help
  reduce the shame we may feel if we if we think
  its a weakness, or that its our fault.
• Thinking of depression as an illness, because it
  has a recognizable set of symptoms, gives the
  impression that it can be treated medically.

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The Recipe for DepressionHas a number of
ingredients

• Depression is caused and maintained by
• biological
• behavioral
• cognitive
• Interpersonal
• ingredients

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Depression is culturally specific

• Depression presents differently
• In different cultures
• At different times in history

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Getting stuck in The depression loop
Makes you feel better in the short term
Feeling depressed
Staying inside, withdrawing from friends,
thinking about problems
Gets you further stuck in the long run
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Getting Stuck in the depression loop

• Avoidance
• Isolation
• Rumination
• are like digging
• to get out of a hole

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Get to know yourself
Speaking
Thoughts Emotions Personality Attitudes Beliefs Va
lues
CONTROL?
Doing
Inside
Outside
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Taking Control by experimenting

• Im noticing that when I spend
• a lot of time watching TV
• and sitting in the recliner..
• My mood is__________________
• My energy is_________________
• My self concept is____________
• My attitude is________________
• My willingness is_____________

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Toward Away
Avoidance, Isolation, Comfort
Away from what undesired consequence?
Toward what desired consequence?
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Avoidance
I should update my resume
I have to see my family and friends
I need to pay bills
I should get some exercise
I ve got to spend some time on my hobby
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Toward Away
Avoidance of thoughts, feelings and values based
actions
Away from what undesired consequence?
Toward what desired consequence?
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Get to know yourself Experiment
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Important principles of behavior
1. Much of your behavior is so automatic that it
occurs outside of your awareness.
2. You do much of what you do out of habit.
Depression can be viewed as habits of depressive
behaviors.
Sedentary Lifestyle
Avoiding work
Rumination
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Depressant Antidepressant Behavior
Depressant
Antidepressant

• Isolation
• Avoidance
• Rumination
• Sedentary-inactivity
• Drugs and alcohol
• Complaining

• Social support (family friends)
• Pleasurable activities
• Values based activities (work, challenging tasks,
  helping others, accomplishments)
• Increased physical activity/exercise

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Do feelings cause behavior orDoes Behavior Cause
Feelings?
Ill get up when I feel better
Ill feel better when I get up
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Behavioral Activation
Schedule antidepressant behaviors
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TRAPS that keep you in the depression loop
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How to get back onTrac