Recovering from depression: a one-year follow-up

The purpose of this research was to further describe the process of recovering in women who have been depressed. In prior research, recovering from depression consisted of eight categories within three distinct phases and was initiated by a crisis or 'Turning Point' experience. In-depth follow-up interviews with the seven women who participated in a study that had been performed one year earlier were conducted in order to: (i) determine their status in the recovering process; (ii) describe in greater depth the antecedents of the recovering process; (iii) identify potential interventions to assist women in recovering. No new phases of the recovering process were identified in the present study. Interventions that assisted recovering were psychoeducational in nature, instilled hope, and provided for individualized treatment. Recommendations for further research are included in this study. Little empirically based information is available on the process or recovering among women who experience depression. This research is a one-year follow-up of women who participated in an earlier qualitative study of the process of recovering in women who had been depressed. In the previous study, recovering from depression was found to consist of eight categories within three distinct phases, and to be initiated by a crisis or Turning Point experience. The purpose of this present study were to: (i) determine the status of the recovering process one year later; (ii) more fully describe the antecedents of the process; and (iii) propose testable nursing interventions to assist women with depression toward recovering.