According to statistics, about 15% of Americans suffer from one or another form of depression, and it costs the nation 89 billion dollars every year (it includes not only cost for treatment and medicines, but also production loss, work absences and suicidal thoughts). Each year in the U.S. occur about 30 thousand attempted suicides, resulting in the death of a considerable number of people. Depression – is one of the main reasons of employability’s lost among people aged 15-44. Doctors called it «emotional cancer», the same malignant disease disposed to relapses.

Nowadays they used more than two tens of antidepressants with different mechanisms of action. Some of them are not so efficacious as it was expected. Others had tendency to suicidal actions by teenagers, and perhaps by adults.

Today the most popular are medicines which belong to the group of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). The reason – is simplicity of application (one pill per day).

Some time ago, with a help of government budgeting, there was a wide trial after the medicine called Celexa (citalopram). The studies included 3 thousands of patients suffering from depression, from which this antidepressant has helped only a third people, despite the fact that they were given in higher doses than usual.

The next stage of research were conducted with those people who are not helped Celexa. Among those patients were people who suffered from depression more than one year. These patients were prescribed other antidepressants of different classes – Zoloft (from the same group as Celexa), Wellbutrin (other class than SSRI), or Effexor (which has another point of application in brain). It turned out that such simple medicine change has helped at least a quarter of patients do not experience depression attacks during 3-4 months.

Another group of similar patients have continued to give Celexa, but in addition was appointed a Wellbutrin or sedative BuSpar. Among these patients, one third had a calm period during the same term, however, the combination with Wellbutrin was more effective.

The doctors were very interested in these studies, consider it as a new hope for people suffering from depression. Indeed, such a simple procedure, like substitution one medicine with another or addition of a new therapeutic agent allows you to help more patients, especially with severe and long-term recurrent forms of depression. But it is known that the suicidal inducements often occur with a medicine change, so patients and their surroundings should be especially attentive during these periods, to avoid trouble.

Seasonal affective disorder can have the same symptoms as a depression, which are not connected with the certain season. It may be depressed mood, melancholy, anxious feeling, apathy, joylessness or hopelessness. Rarely these symptoms are more pronounced in the first half of the day, whereas to the evening the state becomes better.

More typical for seasonal affective disorder are considered other symptoms. Patients, suffering from seasonal depressions, parallel with depressed mood, anxious feeling and decreased activity, experience drowse and keen appetite during the whole day. During depression they consume more food which is rich in carbohydrates. They can also put on weight. As a rule, reduces the overall tone, but appears weakness and variety of unpleasant sensations in the body.

Asthenic symptomatology of seasonal affective disorder is following: feeling of weakness, flabbiness, souse and all-overishness. It may be different pains and unpleasant feelings in the body. The mental work decreases, the memory and attention worsen. It is significant that intensity of these symptoms practically do not depend on outside force and quite often they are more pronounced in the morning hours after awakening.

In development of seasonal affective disorder the important role plays metabolic serotonin – biologically active substance, which regulate mood.
Experimental researches have shown that in winter the content of serotonin lower than in summer. The significant regulator of serotonin is melatonin – an active material, which production depends on light quantity.

The classical approach of seasonal affective disorder treatment is light therapy. Besides, it has been proved high efficiency of antidepressants with a specific action on the exchange of serotonin in the brain. Prolonged use of these medicines allows not only cure developed depressive state, but also to prevent their future development. As by other depressions, the essential element of effective treatment is psychotherapy