4 ms·

AFIK most cases of depression are triggered by life events. Causative factors are usually not quite that simple (except maybe in the case of adjustment disorder

by eivarv 12y ago

AFIK most cases of depression are triggered by life events. Causative factors are usually not quite that simple (except maybe in the case of adjustment disorder?) But then again this kind of discussion frequently gets muddied by colloquial use of the term "depression".

cpncrunch 12y ago
I guess that's the problem with trying to discuss something complex in a sentence. In many cases the life event appears to be a major causal factor, although there are obviously other perpetuating factors.
- eivarv 12y ago
  Sure. Well, that's just it though; They appear to be a major causal factor. They might be. But is there any reason for us to believe so, other than the observed correlation of some stressor with the onset of an episode? And even then: do they cause or trigger the illness? Or maybe that's what you mean - that a life event triggers the episode, not that the traumatic event is the genesis of the illness?
  - cpncrunch 12y ago
    I guess you can never definitively prove it. However, given what we know about how the stress system works, how long-term high cortisol affects the brain, etc., it's pretty well established that long-term stress has certain measurable effects on structure of the brain. Also, there have been studies showing similar changes in brain chemistry in animals to that seen in depressed patients, when put into socially stressful situations. I'm not entirely sure what your differentiation is between "trigger" and "genesis" in this case. Can you explain?
    - eivarv 12y ago
      I'm sorry, I don't think I made myself very clear:P My point, summed up, is one regarding definition. Maybe it's just pedantry, but I find that your use of cause (what I also describe as genesis) sort of implies that it is a progenitor - that it is a starting point of sorts. And what I'm suggesting is that there are other factors at play (biopsychosocial model) long before the culmination of the disease in a major depressive episode - provided we are still talking about the term "depression" as in "major depressive disorder."
      - cpncrunch 12y ago
        In the cases I have witnessed, life events have been the progenitor. There are obviously other factors, such as personality, genetics, etc. However, life events seem to have been the main "cause" of these depressive episodes (and not just the trigger).

by eivarv 12y ago

cpncrunch 12y ago

I guess that's the problem with trying to discuss something complex in a sentence. In many cases the life event appears to be a major causal factor, although there are obviously other perpetuating factors.

eivarv 12y ago
Sure. Well, that's just it though; They appear to be a major causal factor. They might be. But is there any reason for us to believe so, other than the observed correlation of some stressor with the onset of an episode? And even then: do they cause or trigger the illness? Or maybe that's what you mean - that a life event triggers the episode, not that the traumatic event is the genesis of the illness?
- cpncrunch 12y ago
  I guess you can never definitively prove it. However, given what we know about how the stress system works, how long-term high cortisol affects the brain, etc., it's pretty well established that long-term stress has certain measurable effects on structure of the brain. Also, there have been studies showing similar changes in brain chemistry in animals to that seen in depressed patients, when put into socially stressful situations. I'm not entirely sure what your differentiation is between "trigger" and "genesis" in this case. Can you explain?
  - eivarv 12y ago
    I'm sorry, I don't think I made myself very clear:P My point, summed up, is one regarding definition. Maybe it's just pedantry, but I find that your use of cause (what I also describe as genesis) sort of implies that it is a progenitor - that it is a starting point of sorts. And what I'm suggesting is that there are other factors at play (biopsychosocial model) long before the culmination of the disease in a major depressive episode - provided we are still talking about the term "depression" as in "major depressive disorder."
    - cpncrunch 12y ago
      In the cases I have witnessed, life events have been the progenitor. There are obviously other factors, such as personality, genetics, etc. However, life events seem to have been the main "cause" of these depressive episodes (and not just the trigger).