> Depressed people often say it involves a fundamental shift, like entering a different ‘world’ – a world detached from ordinary reality and other people. Depre

> Depressed people often say it involves a fundamental shift, like entering a different ‘world’ – a world detached from ordinary reality and other people. Depression seems to be a more totalising kind of experience than some others. Perhaps it is even a distinct state of consciousness, and can, in turn, reveal something about the nature of consciousness itself. If depression wasn't seen with a negative valence then its prevalence in contemporary society would be much more obvious. Most people, at least the ones that can't afford to live close to green spaces, are far removed from nature and surrounded by mostly artificial constructions. There is research that indicates this is generally not good for mental health and is probably a causal factor for the rise in mental illnesses and associated over-medication in dealing with low moods and anxiety. [1] The other issue is the following: > Seeing depression along with other altered global states of consciousness is a theoretical rather than a clinical shift – but it could make a difference to how we treat depression further along the line. In particular, the idea can shed light on the success of psychedelic psychiatry, a recent and growing research field, which looks to treat various mental disorders with psychedelics such as ketamine, mescaline and psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms). It's great we can give people drugs to reduce their suffering but this doesn't address the systemic and environmental issues that force people to seek the medication in the first place. There is a clear signal that even though the human built environment has reduced much physical suffering it has nonetheless also had several unintended consequences like increased incidence of various psychopathologies. 1: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/145305/green-space-is-good-for-mental-health https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/145305/green-space-...