Depression by Esteban Ganem

 

 

            Is there an epidemic that is so common that it often gets ignored? One out of eight adolescents are affected by it and one out of four people are affected by it by the end of their lifetime (“Depression Statistics” 1). That epidemic is depression. Depression is one of the most common mood disorders, and it leaves people with feelings of dejection. This is a large deal because it actually affects the brain straight on, and decreases the state of mind and well-being of those who have it.

            Depression has a long history. Since depression is a mental disorder, it has been around for as long as human beings have been around. Its earliest appearances in text date back to ancient Mesopotamia (Nemade 1). It was referred to as “melancholia” and was considered to be a form of demonic possession to be treated by spiritual healers (1). In fact, Greek and Roman doctors were the first to have some sort of scientific explanation, instead referring to biological and psychological causes (1). Hippocrates, an early Greek physician, credited mental illnesses to a lack of certain fluids in the bodies, called humours (1). He claimed that an excess amount of black bile in the spleen caused melancholia (1). Contrary to Hippocrates, Roman philosopher Cicero believed that depression was instead caused through violent rage, grief, and fear (1). All sorts of remedies to treat it were used including music, special diets, massages, and more (1). This era of thinking lasted only for a short period of time until the last years before Christ, and people shifted back to believing that depression was caused by demons (1). Often times, people would use exorcism-like treatments for these people (1). They would often beat and starve people with these mental illnesses, in order to “get the demons out” (1).

 Hundreds of years past this, during the Middle Ages, people still resorted to extreme methods such as drowning and burning, and if they were lucky, they were locked up in “lunatic asylums” (1). In 1621, Anatomy of Melancholy was published by Robert Burton and cited psychological and social effects for the cause of depression (1). During the Age of Enlightenment, views changed drastically on depression (1). In the beginning, depression was credited to inheritance from birth and was viewed as unchangeable, but was near the end of the era, depression was seen to be rooted in anger and advocated for music, exercise and diet to fix this problem (1-2).

Sigmund Freud later developed on this idea in his 1917 essay (2). He claimed that it was a response to a form of loss, whether it is real or symbolic (2).  A person’s anger over this loss weakened his self-esteem in return and results in self-hatred which also makes his actions change to this form (2). He believed that psychoanalysis was the correct way to resolve the need for self-abusive thoughts and behaviors (2). Even today, psychoanalysis continues to be a method that is used for those that seek help for depression.

            Psychoanalysis is a treatment of mental illnesses that has a goal of releasing unconscious emotions, or making the unconscious part of one’s conscious mind (McLeod 1). It is a long process of multiple sessions in which the patient tells the therapist their dreams and past memories (1). This usually last for multiple sessions a week for up to five years (1). The psychoanalyst often does not tell their client much about themselves so that they can seem like a blank screen and that the outside world does not influence how the patient responds to the analyst (1). Different techniques for interpreting the unconscious mind are used in psychoanalysis including dream interpretations and inkblot interpretations (1). Inkblots are ambiguous blots of ink that mean nothing and are instead open to interpretation (1). The image that appears to the patient is often something revealing about their unconsciousness and is used by the analyst to interpret what it is that is troubling their client (1). Freud also believed that tongue slips told a lot about a person’s unconsciousness (1). We reveal what we are actually thinking about by saying what we do not mean to say (1). Freud believed that everything was significant, as all behavior is determined (1).

 

            There are millions of examples of depressed people out there but they look just the same as normal people on the outside. Depending on the severity, they may or may not feel the effects every day, as it could be a chronic form of depression, or it may come and go. Someone with depression that is not as severe may feel dejection periodically. The feeling of depressed is often compared to sadness, but it is actually a different feeling than sadness, that is often hard to explain, and they may not feel it every day.

            Our current understanding of depression is that it has a variety of causes, including mental and physical causes (Nemade 2). These causes often lead to its victims not being able to function completely in society. These societal effects include but are not limited to substance abuse, family withdrawal, and decrease in productivity (Tracy 1). Often, the depressed turn to substance abuse because they are desperate for fixes to their problems. They will try anything to take their minds off of their own negative thoughts and, in turn, go to drugs and alcohol for effective solutions. They also withdraw themselves from their friends and family, as they feel that they are bringing down everybody around them. They do not want to cause any harm to anyone, hence why they are so keen to staying away from those that are close to them. They also decrease in productivity from school or work, because having a mental illness is distracting from the task at hand in the workplace or the classroom. The effect of mental illness delays thinking and puts the victim’s brain on their own negative thoughts. These effects often lead to suicide or an attempt at it (1). Fifteen percent of all people affected by depression end up taking their own lives eventually (1). The nightmare of living in their own negative thoughts is often too much to live through for these people. Those that are depressed often see a death twenty five years sooner than those that are not in the long run anyway (1). All of these effects on people, end up making it a deadlier illness than many would think.

Finding a solution to a mental illness is a lot harder than finding cures or solutions to physical problems or illnesses. For example, if someone is ill with the flu, there is a cure or other solutions and medicine in order to overcome it. Of course, there are medicines and antidepressants for mental illnesses but they are not going to be one hundred percent effective due to the complex nature of the brain. Often, simple medicine is not going to be enough in order to help cure depression or any other mental illness from someone. Therapy is needed in most cases, but many times, even this is not enough.

            There are many natural solutions to depression, however, different things work for different people. That is to say that although some natural solutions might work for one person’s depression, every person’s case and severity of depression could be different from another’s. Some natural solutions might include getting in a routine, setting goals, exercising, getting enough sleep and more (Griffin 1). These are the more viable solutions to helping oneself overcome depression. There is no real easy solution, as antidepressants are often found to be ineffective and not helping. One type of depression has developed called treatment-resistant depression (“Treatment-Resistant Depression” 1). Treatment-resistant depression is noticed when anti-depressants are taken, and the person still feels depressed inside their brain (1). Depression medications are inefficient for up to a third of depression victims and do not always help with the type of depression that is defined as “treatment-resistant depression” (1).

            Psychotherapy is one very popular way, and debatably the best way for depressed people to get better. Even though it is hard to find the right treatment for depression, all depression can be cured, no matter the severity (Saisan 1). Psychotherapy, or talk therapy, is a popular solution for people with depression (“Understanding Psychotherapy and How It Works” 1). Psychotherapy is applying scientifically proven procedures to help people work through their own mental issues (1). In this procedure, the therapist talks through the victim’s problems and mental state with the victim and they confront the conflicts and its sources (1). If everyone becomes on board with releasing their nervousness and deciding to talk to someone about it then psychotherapy could be a possible solution.

 

            There is no one solution that works the best for everyone for resolving depression. This is the hardest part about finding a solution. Different things all work for different people, and often they never completely get rid of the problem anyway. Depression can go away in many different ways, and there has not been a clear solution as to how someone should get rid of it. The natural methods are different for every person, as are the depression medications.

            Albert Camus was a large philosophical thinker who studied hard about the science of existing, existentialism (“Man Provides Life’s Meaning” 1). He also believed that everyone has a choice in any situation (1). Personally, I believe that this contradicts with many ideas associated with the depression epidemic. I do not think that people decide to be depressed, or decide how to be cured. I do not think that there is an easy solution in which people can decide to not be depressed anymore. He does, however, believe suicide to come from a state in which living in the absurd world has become too much and there are too many demands without anyone to count on (1). This is extremely similar to how a person that is categorized today as depressed might feel.

            In Camus’ main philosophy, he fails to point out when people would often take their own life, even when everything seems to be going right in their life. Depressed people often feel this way. There indeed would be a choice involved in taking their own life, but that does not coincide with the feeling of depression. I think Camus would be quite fascinated with the idea of depression, and he would have to change some of his philosophies based upon this idea. The fact that it has only recently came out of the background as a problem, might be why Camus did not really touch on the exact topic. Although Camus did describe a problem with loneliness in his life, I believe certain events and people around him to have caused this feeling, and is categorized as more as an event-based depression, instead of a mental stress that is felt without reason. The depression that we most often categorize today is felt even when the victims have great lives going on around them, and continues to be felt until they find some sort of solution to it, if they ever do.

            Depression is really an absurd epidemic, as the cause of it can be unexplainable and its symptoms are very hard to describe. The depression in some people’s brains can trigger even if the victim knows that everything is content in their life. This is an epidemic that is debatable on whether or not it is spread easily, much unlike other epidemics. The absurdity of it is in its unpredictability, and its meaningless cause.

            Depression is a serious problem and will continue to be, as long as other mental illnesses. If our world took mental illnesses a little more seriously, we might have better solutions to these mental problems, such as depression. It is definitely an epidemic and a mass problem that needs to be looked more into in order to understand completely. I hope that someday in the future, science will be able to better explain why people become depressed, but for now, people should look out for others with depression and understand that they do not choose to feel that way. If we recognize it as a large enough problem, someday it will become fixed.

 

Works Cited

“Depression Statistics.” Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, www.dbsalliance.org/site/PageServer?pagename=education_statistics_depression.

Griffin, R. Morgan. “10 Natural Depression Treatments.” WebMD, WebMD, www.webmd.com/depression/features/natural-treatments#1. Accessed 2 May 2017.

“Man Provides Life's Meaning.” Camus on The Meaning of Life, philosophy.lander.edu/intro/camus.html. Accessed 2 May 2017.

McLeod, Saul. “Saul McLeod.” Simply Psychology, 2007, www.simplypsychology.org/psychoanalysis.html. Accessed 13 Mar. 2017.

Nemade, Rashmi, et al. “Historical Understandings Of Depression.” Mental Help Historical Understandings of Depression Comments, Mentalhelp.net, www.mentalhelp.net/articles/historical-understandings-of-depression/. Accessed 7 Mar. 2017.

Saisan, Joanna. “Depression Treatment.” Depression Treatment: Therapy, Medication, and Lifestyle Changes That Can Help Depression, Helpguide.org, www.helpguide.org/articles/depression/depression-treatment.htm. Accessed 4 May 2017.

Tracy, Natasha. “Effects of Depression: Physical, Social Effects of Depression.” HealthyPlace, www.healthyplace.com/depression/effects/effects-of-depression-physical-social-effects-of-depression/. Accessed 14 Mar. 2017.

“Treatment-Resistant Depression.” WebMD, WebMD, www.webmd.com/depression/guide/treatment-resistant-depression-what-is-treatment-resistant-depression#1. Accessed 2 May 2017.

“Understanding Psychotherapy and How It Works.” American Psychological Association, American Psychological Association, www.apa.org/helpcenter/understanding-psychotherapy.aspx. Accessed 4 May 2017.

 

 

 

Esteban Ganem

Hammett T-Th

Final Essay

            Is there an epidemic that is so common that it often gets ignored? One out of eight adolescents are affected by it and one out of four people are affected by it by the end of their lifetime (“Depression Statistics” 1). That epidemic is depression. Depression is one of the most common mood disorders, and it leaves people with feelings of dejection. This is a large deal because it actually affects the brain straight on, and decreases the state of mind and well-being of those who have it.

            Depression has a long history. Since depression is a mental disorder, it has been around for as long as human beings have been around. Its earliest appearances in text date back to ancient Mesopotamia (Nemade 1). It was referred to as “melancholia” and was considered to be a form of demonic possession to be treated by spiritual healers (1). In fact, Greek and Roman doctors were the first to have some sort of scientific explanation, instead referring to biological and psychological causes (1). Hippocrates, an early Greek physician, credited mental illnesses to a lack of certain fluids in the bodies, called humours (1). He claimed that an excess amount of black bile in the spleen caused melancholia (1). Contrary to Hippocrates, Roman philosopher Cicero believed that depression was instead caused through violent rage, grief, and fear (1). All sorts of remedies to treat it were used including music, special diets, massages, and more (1). This era of thinking lasted only for a short period of time until the last years before Christ, and people shifted back to believing that depression was caused by demons (1). Often times, people would use exorcism-like treatments for these people (1). They would often beat and starve people with these mental illnesses, in order to “get the demons out” (1).

 Hundreds of years past this, during the Middle Ages, people still resorted to extreme methods such as drowning and burning, and if they were lucky, they were locked up in “lunatic asylums” (1). In 1621, Anatomy of Melancholy was published by Robert Burton and cited psychological and social effects for the cause of depression (1). During the Age of Enlightenment, views changed drastically on depression (1). In the beginning, depression was credited to inheritance from birth and was viewed as unchangeable, but was near the end of the era, depression was seen to be rooted in anger and advocated for music, exercise and diet to fix this problem (1-2).

Sigmund Freud later developed on this idea in his 1917 essay (2). He claimed that it was a response to a form of loss, whether it is real or symbolic (2).  A person’s anger over this loss weakened his self-esteem in return and results in self-hatred which also makes his actions change to this form (2). He believed that psychoanalysis was the correct way to resolve the need for self-abusive thoughts and behaviors (2). Even today, psychoanalysis continues to be a method that is used for those that seek help for depression.

            Psychoanalysis is a treatment of mental illnesses that has a goal of releasing unconscious emotions, or making the unconscious part of one’s conscious mind (McLeod 1). It is a long process of multiple sessions in which the patient tells the therapist their dreams and past memories (1). This usually last for multiple sessions a week for up to five years (1). The psychoanalyst often does not tell their client much about themselves so that they can seem like a blank screen and that the outside world does not influence how the patient responds to the analyst (1). Different techniques for interpreting the unconscious mind are used in psychoanalysis including dream interpretations and inkblot interpretations (1). Inkblots are ambiguous blots of ink that mean nothing and are instead open to interpretation (1). The image that appears to the patient is often something revealing about their unconsciousness and is used by the analyst to interpret what it is that is troubling their client (1). Freud also believed that tongue slips told a lot about a person’s unconsciousness (1). We reveal what we are actually thinking about by saying what we do not mean to say (1). Freud believed that everything was significant, as all behavior is determined (1).

            There are millions of examples of depressed people out there but they look just the same as normal people on the outside. Depending on the severity, they may or may not feel the effects every day, as it could be a chronic form of depression, or it may come and go. Someone with depression that is not as severe may feel dejection periodically. The feeling of depressed is often compared to sadness, but it is actually a different feeling than sadness, that is often hard to explain, and they may not feel it every day.

            Our current understanding of depression is that it has a variety of causes, including mental and physical causes (Nemade 2). These causes often lead to its victims not being able to function completely in society. These societal effects include but are not limited to substance abuse, family withdrawal, and decrease in productivity (Tracy 1). Often, the depressed turn to substance abuse because they are desperate for fixes to their problems. They will try anything to take their minds off of their own negative thoughts and, in turn, go to drugs and alcohol for effective solutions. They also withdraw themselves from their friends and family, as they feel that they are bringing down everybody around them. They do not want to cause any harm to anyone, hence why they are so keen to staying away from those that are close to them. They also decrease in productivity from school or work, because having a mental illness is distracting from the task at hand in the workplace or the classroom. The effect of mental illness delays thinking and puts the victim’s brain on their own negative thoughts. These effects often lead to suicide or an attempt at it (1). Fifteen percent of all people affected by depression end up taking their own lives eventually (1). The nightmare of living in their own negative thoughts is often too much to live through for these people. Those that are depressed often see a death twenty five years sooner than those that are not in the long run anyway (1). All of these effects on people, end up making it a deadlier illness than many would think.

Finding a solution to a mental illness is a lot harder than finding cures or solutions to physical problems or illnesses. For example, if someone is ill with the flu, there is a cure or other solutions and medicine in order to overcome it. Of course, there are medicines and antidepressants for mental illnesses but they are not going to be one hundred percent effective due to the complex nature of the brain. Often, simple medicine is not going to be enough in order to help cure depression or any other mental illness from someone. Therapy is needed in most cases, but many times, even this is not enough.

            There are many natural solutions to depression, however, different things work for different people. That is to say that although some natural solutions might work for one person’s depression, every person’s case and severity of depression could be different from another’s. Some natural solutions might include getting in a routine, setting goals, exercising, getting enough sleep and more (Griffin 1). These are the more viable solutions to helping oneself overcome depression. There is no real easy solution, as antidepressants are often found to be ineffective and not helping. One type of depression has developed called treatment-resistant depression (“Treatment-Resistant Depression” 1). Treatment-resistant depression is noticed when anti-depressants are taken, and the person still feels depressed inside their brain (1). Depression medications are inefficient for up to a third of depression victims and do not always help with the type of depression that is defined as “treatment-resistant depression” (1).

            Psychotherapy is one very popular way, and debatably the best way for depressed people to get better. Even though it is hard to find the right treatment for depression, all depression can be cured, no matter the severity (Saisan 1). Psychotherapy, or talk therapy, is a popular solution for people with depression (“Understanding Psychotherapy and How It Works” 1). Psychotherapy is applying scientifically proven procedures to help people work through their own mental issues (1). In this procedure, the therapist talks through the victim’s problems and mental state with the victim and they confront the conflicts and its sources (1). If everyone becomes on board with releasing their nervousness and deciding to talk to someone about it then psychotherapy could be a possible solution.

            There is no one solution that works the best for everyone for resolving depression. This is the hardest part about finding a solution. Different things all work for different people, and often they never completely get rid of the problem anyway. Depression can go away in many different ways, and there has not been a clear solution as to how someone should get rid of it. The natural methods are different for every person, as are the depression medications.

            Albert Camus was a large philosophical thinker who studied hard about the science of existing, existentialism (“Man Provides Life’s Meaning” 1). He also believed that everyone has a choice in any situation (1). Personally, I believe that this contradicts with many ideas associated with the depression epidemic. I do not think that people decide to be depressed, or decide how to be cured. I do not think that there is an easy solution in which people can decide to not be depressed anymore. He does, however, believe suicide to come from a state in which living in the absurd world has become too much and there are too many demands without anyone to count on (1). This is extremely similar to how a person that is categorized today as depressed might feel.

            In Camus’ main philosophy, he fails to point out when people would often take their own life, even when everything seems to be going right in their life. Depressed people often feel this way. There indeed would be a choice involved in taking their own life, but that does not coincide with the feeling of depression. I think Camus would be quite fascinated with the idea of depression, and he would have to change some of his philosophies based upon this idea. The fact that it has only recently came out of the background as a problem, might be why Camus did not really touch on the exact topic. Although Camus did describe a problem with loneliness in his life, I believe certain events and people around him to have caused this feeling, and is categorized as more as an event-based depression, instead of a mental stress that is felt without reason. The depression that we most often categorize today is felt even when the victims have great lives going on around them, and continues to be felt until they find some sort of solution to it, if they ever do.

            Depression is really an absurd epidemic, as the cause of it can be unexplainable and its symptoms are very hard to describe. The depression in some people’s brains can trigger even if the victim knows that everything is content in their life. This is an epidemic that is debatable on whether or not it is spread easily, much unlike other epidemics. The absurdity of it is in its unpredictability, and its meaningless cause.

            Depression is a serious problem and will continue to be, as long as other mental illnesses. If our world took mental illnesses a little more seriously, we might have better solutions to these mental problems, such as depression. It is definitely an epidemic and a mass problem that needs to be looked more into in order to understand completely. I hope that someday in the future, science will be able to better explain why people become depressed, but for now, people should look out for others with depression and understand that they do not choose to feel that way. If we recognize it as a large enough problem, someday it will become fixed.

 

Works Cited