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What would stop a person like this from killing herself if she is truly depressed ? What stops her from killing herself out of curiosity ? Would she make a be

What would stop a person like this from killing herself if she is truly depressed ? What stops her from killing herself out of curiosity ? Would she make a better or worse soldier ? I wish this woman did an AMA.

berberous 12y ago
I wonder if you can be truly depressed if you don't fear anything? Or does her lack of fear not encompass anxiety?
- SafariDevelop 12y ago
  Great questions. > I wonder if you can be truly depressed if you don't fear anything? In the podcast, she does describe herself to be happy 9 out of 10 times. > Or does her lack of fear not encompass anxiety? I asked someone who had met her in person a similar question: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8927905 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8927905
- Coding_Cat 12y ago
  >I wonder if you can be truly depressed if you don't fear anything? I would say yes, often times depression manifests itself not as a feeling of fear or dread but as apathy. See for example Hugh Laurie's personal life [1,2] or Nine Inch Nails' Everyday is Exactly the Same[3] which captures that exact feeling. Or of course the wonderful Hyperbole and a Half's account of depression[4], especially the second part makes the point that depression at its worst is a void. No positive feelings, but also no negative ones. Now I made myself sad^H^H^H apathetic going through those sources. Why does Trent Reznor have to be so good at projecting? As for the anxiety bit (anxiety and depression are to completely different things), the article mentions her response to having her blood-co2 levels elevated, which seems to me to be a standard anxiety response. A feeling of restlessness and dread. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Laurie#Personal_Life http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Laurie#Personal_Life [2] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2316880/Playing-House-nightmare-says-Hugh-Laurie-250-000-episode.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2316880/Playing... (I know, I know, Daily mail but the quotes are worth it) [3]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Aj9_8t1eQc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Aj9_8t1eQc [4] http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.nl/2011/10/adventures-in-depression.html http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.nl/2011/10/adventures-in-d...
wyager 12y ago
Fear of death is not the only motivation for survival. It is possible to rationally realize that dying would have negative utility, even failing to take into account fear of death. In general, evolution tends to produce redundant systems for reproduction-critical activities.

berberous 12y ago

I wonder if you can be truly depressed if you don't fear anything? Or does her lack of fear not encompass anxiety?

SafariDevelop 12y ago
Great questions. > I wonder if you can be truly depressed if you don't fear anything? In the podcast, she does describe herself to be happy 9 out of 10 times. > Or does her lack of fear not encompass anxiety? I asked someone who had met her in person a similar question: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8927905 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8927905
Coding_Cat 12y ago
>I wonder if you can be truly depressed if you don't fear anything? I would say yes, often times depression manifests itself not as a feeling of fear or dread but as apathy. See for example Hugh Laurie's personal life [1,2] or Nine Inch Nails' Everyday is Exactly the Same[3] which captures that exact feeling. Or of course the wonderful Hyperbole and a Half's account of depression[4], especially the second part makes the point that depression at its worst is a void. No positive feelings, but also no negative ones. Now I made myself sad^H^H^H apathetic going through those sources. Why does Trent Reznor have to be so good at projecting? As for the anxiety bit (anxiety and depression are to completely different things), the article mentions her response to having her blood-co2 levels elevated, which seems to me to be a standard anxiety response. A feeling of restlessness and dread. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Laurie#Personal_Life http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Laurie#Personal_Life [2] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2316880/Playing-House-nightmare-says-Hugh-Laurie-250-000-episode.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2316880/Playing... (I know, I know, Daily mail but the quotes are worth it) [3]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Aj9_8t1eQc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Aj9_8t1eQc [4] http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.nl/2011/10/adventures-in-depression.html http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.nl/2011/10/adventures-in-d...

wyager 12y ago

Fear of death is not the only motivation for survival. It is possible to rationally realize that dying would have negative utility, even failing to take into account fear of death. In general, evolution tends to produce redundant systems for reproduction-critical activities.