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Here's an important thing from the article: >it's most likely to occur in mildly depressed people—those suffering from major depression, by contrast, are more
by dawg- 7y ago
Here's an important thing from the article:
>it's most likely to occur in mildly depressed people—those suffering from major depression, by contrast, are more likely to suffer from larger distortions in their thinking.
I wonder if we have overly-pathologized the regular melancholy that comes with every day life? If mildly depressed people actually see the world realistically, maybe nothing is actually wrong with them? Should we call them depressed or should we just call them human?
I think we need to recognize the constant striving for happiness, and the inevitable disappointment when we don't reach it, as the unhealthy behavior that it is. It's okay, normal, even necessary to feel sad and pissed off at the world sometimes. It doesn't automatically mean something is wrong with you.
Of course, it would be absolutely unacceptable for the makers of Prozac to lose half of their customers, so it is a major thoughtcrime in many circles to even suggest the possibility.
If people have "mild depression", maybe sometimes it's okay to tell them to toughen up, put their head down and keep grinding because that's what life consists of. If you are not mildly depressed then you are an idiot - it shouldn't be called mild depression, it should just be called "existing as a human being". You grind and suffer and struggle through life, because you were born into a broken world and have no other choice. Sometimes all the struggle gets you good things to be proud of and appreciate. And sometimes all the suffering doesn't amount to anything of worth at all. That's life, not a pathology. It's amazingly beautiful if you can learn to come at it from the right angle, but that doesn't mean it will ever hurt any less.
- rtkaratekid 7y agoI agree with this. At some point during my "struggle" with depression, I realized it's just who I am. Severe depression should be treated, sure. But this "mild depression" in my mind is more of a personality trait than a clinical disorder. It took me 8 years of coping with "depression" and earning an undergraduate degree in neuroscience to realize this. At this point I actually wouldn't give up this personality trait even if I had the option to. It's become an asset rather than a liability.
- odyssey7 7y agoThe way this is framed, an underlying question is whether medicine should make normal lives better, or just treat disease. I would definitely say yes to making normal lives better in addition to treating disease.
- dawg- 7y agoI love that you pulled that question out of my post because I hadn't even considered it. Definitely food for thought!
- MadWombat 7y ago"It's okay, normal, even necessary to feel sad and pissed off at the world sometimes. It doesn't automatically mean something is wrong with you." But this is not what mild depression is like. It is when feeling sad and pissed off at the world is the baseline. It is OK to feel sad, but I kinda wish I felt something else a bit more often.
- a1369209993 7y agoHave you seen what (most of) the world looks like? Feeling sad and pissed off at it is the correct baseline.
- lazerpants 7y agoI completely agree. Then of course, when I point out that it means that suicide is a totally valid and perhaps good option, people tell me I'm seriously depressed, not mildly. Maybe there's not such a big difference between the two, mild and debilitating depression, just the amount of energy you're willing to put into living your life.
- DisruptiveDave 7y ago> I think we need to recognize the constant striving for happiness, and the inevitable disappointment when we don't reach it, as the unhealthy behavior that it is. It's okay, normal, even necessary to feel sad and pissed off at the world sometimes. It doesn't automatically mean something is wrong with you. No, it doesn't mean something is wrong with you. But repeating that vicious cycle over and over and over and over again is a problem. I had a conversation with my wife the other night about seemingly inane and harmless complaining. "If we counted the number of these kinds of complaints coming from our mouths daily it would be in the dozens, perhaps more." This is death (via discontentment) by a thousand self-administered cuts. Once you see this clearly, when the veil is pulled back, you can't unsee it. It's an epidemic. The fact that it's unrecognizable to most and it is considered "natural" is guaranteeing the problem will never be solved.
- patcon 7y ago> Should we call them depressed or should we just call them human? But what if being human involves the delusion. Perceiving reality as it is might not be "normal", nor "human". (Pls CTRL+F my username elsewhere in thread for some context there :)
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]