Carrying out positive actions would be an effective way out of the isolation that characterizes the Depression. A study by the University of Exeter (Great Britain) published in The Lancet extols the merits of Behavioral Activation (KT) therapy for treating depressive symptoms. This little-known therapy is touted as a promising and inexpensive alternative to cognitive behavioral therapy (TCC).
Simple to implement, AC therapy encourages positive actions such as, for example, going for a bike ride, calling friends, going out, meeting new people, meditating … At the same time, the patient is encouraged to stop negative behaviors like taking drugs, drinking excessively or being in front of the TV all day.
This therapy in action differs from cognitive behavioral therapy. CBT is based on emotion management working on thought and in particular how to deal with negative situations. David Richards, a profession at the National Institute for Health Research at the University of Exeter, is convinced that AC is a therapy of the future which deserves to be generalized to save health costs. Above all, he ensures that this therapy is more profitable for the less fortunate patients because of its lower cost.
Lower cost of depression symptoms
His conclusion is supported by a demonstration given to 440 adults suffering from depression and divided into two groups. Some have been treated with CBT and others with behavioral activation. A year after the start of the experiment, it turned out that the benefits of AC were not less than those of TTC. Two-thirds of participants in both groups experienced a halving of their depressive symptoms. CA, on the other hand, enabled patients to save 20% compared to patients treated with cognitive behavioral therapy.
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