treatments. Some antidepressant drugs such as fluoxentine and imipramine can be used with both major and mild depression patients. Antianxiety drugs however don't have as much effect on Dysthymia patients as do antidepressants. Another form of treatment is psychosocial treatment. Psychotherapy is the principal treatment resource for patients with dysthymic disorder. Reassurance that the psychotherapist understands the depth of the patient's pain, assessment of suicidal and other self-destructive potential, and optimism for the future are all useful. There is also "short term" psychotherapy. This stresses changes in interpersonal relationships and cognitive self-awareness are becoming more popular. Some of that is due to the fact that long-term analytic approaches to personality change are economically unfeasible. There is also group therapy that sufferers can take. Many sufferers benefit from group therapy and form active investigation and restructuring of maladaptive social functioning. The last type of therapy a Dysthymic can use is family therapy which is less common. This approach focuses on the "role of the sick member" in the family system rather than on the symptoms of the patient....
