A young woman loses her husband in a car crash. She has no history of psychiatric disorders. She is grief-stricken and has to take time off work. Because of the removal of the bereavement exclusion, after 2 weeks, she clinically fulfills the ‘new’ criteria for major depression, She consults her primary care doctor...
Depending on the circumstances of the loss, the client may also meet the criteria for acute stress reaction / adjustment disorder and could be treated accordingly.
Labels, labels everywhere. Instead of focusing on labels, focus on the patient. I start with the simple stuff. We now know that diet plays a key role in enhancing brain function so I would encourage her to focus on eating a healthy diet. Exercise is another great way to counter anxiety and stress. I would hold off on any medications at this point. As Peter Gotzsche points out in his new book "Deadly Medicines and Organized Crime" many psychotropic medications seem to cause more harm than good.
I suspect the "new" criteria for major depression were strongly influenced by those who have financial ties to drug companies.
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