The rates of depression continue to rise. In 2016 the National Institute of Mental Health estimated that over 16 million people in the United States had at least one major depressive episode. In Australia, 4.8 million people, or 20% had a mental or behavioral issue in 2017. While depression can affect almost anyone, it is most common those aged 18 – 25, and in individuals belonging to two or more races.
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What Causes Depression?
There are a range of factors that can cause depression, but these are the most common causes:
Genetics – a family history of depression is often a risk factor in developing depression in around 30% of cases. Families would typically share similar environments, diets, some lifestyle choices, as well as DNA.
Illness – being sick for long periods, in chronic pain and not being able to do the things you would normally do, can contribute to depression. Certain illnesses can contribute to depression, including brain tumor, epilepsy, some cancers, cardiovascular diseases, and degenerative neurological disorders.
Brain Chemistry – In most cases of Clinical Depression, neurotransmitter function is likely disrupted. Neurotransmitters are chemicals, and these carry signals between different parts of the brain.
The three most essential chemicals here which affect mood are serotonin, noradrenaline, and dopamine.
When people are depressed, these signals get weaker, or they get disrupted before passing to the next nerve cell.
Personality Style – Another contributing factor can be the type of personality style the person has. People who have nervous, anxious, self-critical, or highly strung type personalities can be more at risk of developing depression. However, this factor alone doesn’t mean that you will develop depression.
Stress Or Trauma – While we all experience stress at times, certain life events can trigger depression, especially when the event is ongoing. Examples are unemployment, divorce, money problems, the death of a loved one. Trauma such as an accident or inflicted violence can also cause depression
Aging – Our brain function reduces as we age, and specific neurotransmitter pathways that influence our mood can be impacted. These changes may be concerning dementia and high blood pressure – which can also lead to mini-strokes.
Range of Treatment Options for Depression
There is a wide range of treatment options for depression, including:
Psychological Treatment:
- Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT)
- e-mental health therapies (online therapies)
- Interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT)
- Positive psychology
- Counseling
For more information about the above treatment options, please refer to the Black Dog Institute
Physical Treatment:
- Drug treatments
- Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
- Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS).
Self Help And Alternative Therapies
Many people have tried several of these therapies and would prefer to treat depression naturally or without drugs.
The Bellabee has a couple of custom settings specifically for Depression. To find the best setting for you, it would be worth seeing a Neurofeedback Specialist. However, you can try each of these settings and see if one works better than the others.
Bellabee Recipe For Depression
There are several different settings or recipes which are available for Depression.
One of the suggested settings is:
- 12Hz – 10 Min
- 13Hz – 10 Min
- 14Hz – 10 Min
- 15Hz – 20 Min
- 13Hz – 10 Min
Another Even More Simple Setting is:
- 10 Hz for 30 minutes.
The above setting has helped several chronically depressed people.
Should I See A Neurofeedback Specialist?
When you visit a Neurofeedback Specialist, they can hook you up to measure what is going on with your brain (it’s like measuring electro pulses). They can determine the best settings of Neuro Modulation (like the Bellabee) to help get your brain functioning.
You could have one session, get the recommended settings for you to use at home with the Bellabee, and then go back after a few weeks to see how you are doing.
Is Neurofeedback Like Counselling?
No, while a Neurofeedback Specialist will talk to you about what is going on, they are more there to measure what they see what your brain is doing, so they can offer treatment for it using Neuromodulation.
What Happens To The Brain Wearing Bellabee?
The following chart shows what happened to the brain for this one person who was experiencing Anxiety and Depression. Run your eyes down the image for each Brain stage (such as Delta) and note the changes every 4 minutes while a different Hz setting was running.
Try If Anti-Anxiety or Anti-Stress Not Having An Impact
It can also be worth trying the Bellabee Depression mode if you have been using the Anti-Anxiety or Anti-Stress methods and not feeling much different. You may have early signs of depression that you do not recognize yourself.
Try using it for one hour and see if you feel any different. Signs of improvement might be quite subtle at first. Maybe go and have a look around outside and see if things look a bit brighter.
How Long Before I Feel Different?
When using a PEMF device like a Bellabee while being monitored by a Neurofeedback Specialist, they can pick up changes in your brain within just 3 minutes, but it may take longer for you to feel something yourself. I’ve heard of one person who noted some initial improvement after a few days but then felt the depression lift for hours on end after around two weeks of daily use, and now rarely experiences depression at all. Try wearing it once or twice a day for three weeks and see how you feel.
Can Depression Cure Without Drugs?
When using Bellabee, many people have experienced relief. It may take at least 15 – 20 sessions before you notice the depression lifting. It is a drug-free way to treat depression and does not have any reported side effects. Of course, always talk to your Doctor before changing your medication.
Do I Have To Keep Using Bellabee?
Once you feel an improvement, don’t stop using it. Keep using it for a few more months, so the brain gets trained to run the new frequencies. Monitor how you feel as you are using the Bellabee. There’s no harm in stopping using it, then having to start again. Chances are you would continue to use the Bellabee for other settings to help with Stress, Anxiety, or Sleep.
Some long term testing has been performed, where it was proven that the results of Neurofeedback training were long-lasting.