Mood Disorders & Depression
When Feeling Like Yourself Feels Out of Reach
Depression isn’t just sadness — it’s the fog that makes daily tasks feel overwhelming, the flatness that dulls things you used to love, and fatigue sleep doesn’t fix. Whether you’re managing a single depressive episode or a longer-term mood condition, Dr. Mallare provides care that takes your full experience seriously.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does medication help manage depression?
Depression medication regulates key neurotransmitters — serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine — that influence mood, energy, sleep, and cognitive function. Mood stability isn’t about feeling happy all the time; it means lifting the severe baseline low so your emotional nervous system can respond flexibly to everyday events.
What if past medications haven’t worked?
Very common. Dr. Mallare reviews past trial durations, dosages, and side-effect histories, and explores alternative medication classes, combination regimens, or overlooked co-occurring conditions (like trauma or executive dysfunction) that may be complicating treatment.
How does therapy fit alongside medication?
Medication provides the biological foundation; supportive therapy (CBT, solution-focused strategies) helps you process life challenges and build sustainable habits, woven into medication visits rather than treated as a separate track.
How We Build Your Treatment Plan
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1. Full symptom and history review
Episode pattern, duration, severity, prior treatment response, and screening for co-occurring conditions that commonly travel with depression (anxiety, trauma, ADHD).
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2. Medication selection matched to your presentation
Not a default first choice, but one chosen based on your specific symptoms (e.g., low energy vs. anxious depression respond differently).
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e. Structured follow-up
Regular check-ins in the early weeks, since most antidepressants take 4–6 weeks for full effect, with side-effect monitoring throughout.
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4. Refinement over time
Eose or medication adjustments as needed, plus therapy referral if you’re not already connected with a therapist.
What Recovery Can Look Like
Recovery often looks like the return of small things first — being able to get through a task without dread, feeling a flicker of interest in something you’d stopped caring about, sleeping through the night again. It’s rarely instant, and it’s not always linear, but most patients describe a gradual return to feeling like a version of themselves they recognize.
