Man and depression Seasonal affective disorder may point to an atavistic link with behaviour in hibernation. Freud noted the similarities between mourning and depression (then called melancholia) in a now famous paper entitled, "Mourning and Melancholia". Man and depression. Cognitive behaviour therapy has been demonstrated in carefully controlled studies to be among the foremost of the recent wave of methods which achieve more rapid and lasting results than traditional "talk therapy" analysis. For individuals who are not genuinely in need, the fitness cost of major depression is very high because it threatens the flow of fitness benefits. Some general physiological considerations include geics (i.e. a hypothesised innate disposition to depression), neurochemistry (e.g. high levels of stress hormones such as cortisol, low dopamine activity), sleep patterns, female hormone imbalance (e.g. PMS in women), male hormone imbalance (testosterone) in men, use of medication (e.g. corticosteroids), chronic illness (e.g. diabetes or hypothyroidism), and seasonal factors (e.g. seasonal affective disorder related to hormones and sunlight). Seasonal affective disorder may point to an atavistic link with behaviour in hibernation. Vincent van Gogh, who himself suffered from depression and mitted suicide, painted this picture in 1890 of a man that can symbolize the desperation and hopelessness felt in depression. Man and depression. Becks depression inventory
Many people think that there is something shameful about being afflicted with mental illness, and this stigma can lead to discrimination. While a depressed mood is usually seen as deleterious, it may have adaptive benefits. Repetitive transcranial magic stimulation (rTMS) is under study as a possible treatment for depression. Illnesses and changes in cognition that occur in psychosis and dementias, to name but two, can lead to depression. While a depressed mood is usually seen as deleterious, it may have adaptive benefits. The inability to adequately express one's feelings or to not have them be accepted as valid by others can lead to a feeling of unexplainable sadness or grief. Sometimes the depressed mood may relate more to internal processes or even be triggered by them. A third treatment, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), may be used when chemical treatment fails. |
