They have done lots of studies that show that depression, which feels entirely mental and emotional, is also caused by some physical issues. The most common of these is a chemical imbalance, which so many people are prescribed an anti-depressant.

But is it enough? Do people need therapy as much as they do drugs? Can therapy be helpful?

I've gone through a few major depressive episodes and have been treated by both meds and therapy. For me, the two of them worked together and eventually I started to feel better.

What are your experiences?

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In my life, depressed and down feelings have been caused by clearly identifiable life experiences. For example, I've been depressed when my former boss yelled at me continuously, I've been depressed when I haven't managed to make any money, and so on.

I doubt that any chemical changes or antidepressants would have helped. What seems to help for me is a bit of escapism and fantasy - to dream about better things. So dreaming about winning the lottery and buying a boat to motor in the cheerful warm waters of the Carribean is mentally healthy even though it's highly delusional, because it helps recapture the idea that my life can go forward and won't always be stuck in its depressed position.

If it's just a generalized fog of not knowing where you're going, you should of course buy a radar ($1,500 and up). Just kidding. I think those generalized fogs are more susceptable to the chemical explanations.

But I must add that it seems like our present society encourages depression. To be happy is just plain not cool. Being unhappy and whiny and complaining about all the bad things in your life seems to be more popular than actually trying to do something about your problems and improve your life.

This isn't new. In the late 80s, when I ran my BBS, I knew a very nice boy who was a big fan of New Order. I listened a bit to New Order and liked a lot of the music. But I noticed the lyrics were constantly negative, and when I heard my friend was spending a lot of his time closeted in his room, listening to them, I knew it wasn't good for his mental health.

Except that most music made today sounds far worse than New Order I felt the same about what happens today. All our influences seem to be negative. Is it possible those negative influences create chemical imbalances in the brain?

I'm wondering because it seems to me like most depression has a reason and a cause, and if you can adjust those reasons you should be able to solve the problem and go on with a less depressed life. But if depression seems desirable in society, perhaps you don't want to.

I strongly suspect that depression begins with a psychological cause, and the cause produces the chemical imbalances. So to get rid of the depression, the cause has to be removed as well as the imbalances. That's why both talk therapy and drugs would seem to be warranted in lifting the cloud.

D

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