main-ah-logo-horz-w_gradbox
 
  • Home Care Services
    • 24 Hour Home Care & Live-in Care
    • Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care
    • Care for Seniors on Weekends and Vacation
    • Companion Care
    • Elderly Care Services
    • Hospital Sitting Services
    • Non-Medical Home Health Care
    • Hospice Home Care
    • Overnight Home Care
    • Post-Surgical Care
    • Respite Care
    • Senior Home Care
    • Full List of Services
  • About Us
    • Assisting Hands Home Senior Care Advantage
    • Hospital Readmission Penalties
    • Meet the Owners
    • Our Caregivers
    • Testimonials
  • Service Areas
    • Service Areas – Cook County, IL
    • Service Areas – DuPage County, IL
  • Blog
  • Jobs
  • Contact Us

Blog

Home Health New Treatment for Seniors Depression Trains the Brain to Cope with Dysfunction

New Treatment for Seniors Depression Trains the Brain to Cope with Dysfunction

November 29, 2019dueberfluss

By Richard Ueberfluss

Companion Care Hinsdale IL

Clinical depression in the elderly is common. That doesn’t mean it’s normal. Late-life depression affects about 6 million Americans age 65 and older. But only 10% receive treatment for depression. The likely reason is that the elderly often display symptoms of depression differently. Depression in the elderly is also frequently confused with the effects of multiple illnesses and the medicines used to treat them.

Depression in the elderly often increases their risk of cardiac diseases. Depression doubles an elderly person’s risk of cardiac diseases and increases their risk of death from illness. At the same time, depression reduces an elderly person’s ability to rehabilitate. Studies of nursing home patients with physical illnesses have shown that the presence of depression substantially increases the likelihood of death from those illnesses. Depression also has been associated with increased risk of death following a heart attack. For that reason, making sure that an elderly person you are concerned about is evaluated and treated is important, even if the depression is mild.

Traditional treatments for depression include antidepressant medication and talk therapy.  In one study of almost 3,000 patients, only 1/3 of them achieved remission from their depression after up to 14 weeks on certain drugs.

In response to data like this, a new treatment for psychiatric disorder like depression and anxiety is underway that uses real time scans to show patients how their brains go awry—and how to fix the dysfunction, according to a Wall Street Journal story.

The new approach uses neurofeedback, which directly targets the brain dysfunction and emotional and cognitive processes that are understood to underlie psychiatric disorders. It can be personalized to address the issues in each patient’s brain.

Neurofeedback is direct training of brain function, by which the brain learns to function more efficiently. The brain is observed in action from moment to moment that allows medical professionals to train the brain to act in more appropriate patterns. This is a gradual learning process.

Neurofeedback is also called EEG Biofeedback, because it is based on electrical brain activity, the electroencephalogram, or EEG. Neurofeedback is training in self-regulation. It is simply biofeedback applied to the brain directly. Self-regulation is a necessary part of good brain function. Self-regulation training allows the system (the central nervous system) to function better.

The advantage to biofeedback is that it eliminates medication and no need for extensive therapy.

Patients are asked to recall memories or look at pictures while their brains are scanned. Patients see visual representatives of their brain activity almost in real time—often presented in the form of thermometer or colored bar.  Based on what their brains are doing, patients are encouraged to enhance pleasant memories or suppress unpleasant activities.

Tapping into emotional stimuli like faces, helps scientists discover what patients respond to and based on the patient’s brain activity, can stimulate the brain to diminish depression symptoms.

At Assisting Hands, we understand the basic need for regular socialization and ensure your senior loved one receives personal attention, compassionate support and mental stimulation on a daily basis. To learn more about our companion care services in Hinsdale, Downers Grove, Brookfield and surrounding areas, call us at  (630) 413-9899. Request a free in-home consultation. 

Tags: caregiver, depression, elderly care, heart attack, medication, senior, senior care
Previous post Physical Activity Guidelines for Seniors Next post Risk of Daily Low-Dose Aspirin is Outweighed by Benefits to Prevent Heart Attacks and Strokes

Related Articles

How to Respond When Elderly Relatives Refuse Home Care

March 18, 2019jpanayotov

Long Term Care Insurance for In-Home Care – Q/A

July 23, 2015dueberfluss

Can more exercise prevent heart attacks?

April 22, 2015dueberfluss
Chat Window
myCNAjobs Caregiver Job Choice Awards

Call Us

For Services: (630) 413-9899
For Jobs: (331) 457-3390

Services

  • Home Health Care
  • Alzheimer’s and Dementia Home Care
  • Companion Care
  • Elderly Care
  • Hospice Care at Home
  • Hospital Sitting Services
  • Non-Medical Transportation
  • Patient Sitter Services
  • Post-Surgical Care
  • Personal Emergency Response System
  • Respite Care
  • Senior Home Care
  • Weekends and Vacation Care
  • Full List of Services

Served Areas

  • Brookfield
  • Clarendon Hills
  • Darien
  • Downers Grove
  • Hinsdale
  • La Grange
  • Oak Brook
  • Western Springs
  • Westmont
  • Willowbrook
Assisting Hands Google Map

Assisting Hands Review Us On Google
chat-icon

Read Our Newsletter

Read More
Facebook
Twitter
Google+
apache_pb

Download Our Brochure

Download
logo

assisting hands

Assisting Hands Home Care Agency provides elder care services and senior in home care services for families across the country.
  • (630) 413-9899 | For Jobs (331) 457-3390
  • hinsdaleinfo@assistinghands.com
  • 5120 Belmont Rd., Suite i, Downers Grove, IL 60515
Fran500Badge Ranked2018 FranchiseeFall Prevention Clinics of America Logo Walk to End AlzheimersLogo NPDA

COMPANY

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Franchise Opportunities
  • Contact Us

Services

  • Assisting Hands Help Alert Button
  • Aging In Place
  • Fall Prevention
  • Light housekeeping, Meal Preparation
  • Transportation Services (Non-Medical)
  • Personal Care

legal

  • Hospital Readmission Penalties
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Accessibility Statement

2020 Assisting Hands Home Care. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | Powered by Path