Could the below article be true? Could we take a poll here? Just type Y if depressed, N if not.
On the second thought, this poll would not be right: the selection already began - depressed people are more likely to sit at home at stare at the ceiling than on their PC screen.
One in five Americans depressed or unhappy
NEW YORK, Nov 08 (Reuters Health) - A surprising number of Americans report high levels of stress, anxiety and sadness, according to new survey results. Even though their symptoms don’t meet the definition of clinical depression, they can have a significant negative impact on quality of life, according to Dr. Michael Seidman of the Henry Ford […]
The survey involved almost 2,000 adults in six major US cities. Overall, 12% of those interviewed met the criteria for clinical depression, and 10% suffered from what Seidman calls frequent low mood…
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“Stress, anxiety, and sadness” are pretty vague criteria, and as the article states do not necessarily equal clinical depression. If external factors - or more accurately, perception of such - are causing these feelings, then to say that quality of life is being impacted because of them & not the external factors seems like circular reasoning. Calling normal responses to life events “symptoms” is medicalizing normal human experience. Some people even like & thrive under a certain level of stress. (Here’s my Y)
Further nitpick: >2000 adults in 6 cities is hardly a representative sample of the American population. To further extrapolate that 20% are “depressed or unhappy” seems pretty ill-defined.
Cara, you ought to get out of your painting stuff and do something with your wits, your are toooo smart.
You are absolutely right. Being depressed after your SO dies is natural and inderstandable. One might stay depressed for too long, but it’s very individual; what is “long” is hard to determine. Some people get depressed ‘for nothing’, it may mean that they are sick, clinically, and should get help. Real depression is always “internal”. That is, if no apparent external “cause” is found, the person (the patient now) will still be depressed.
I think, people misunderstood the questions, or the questions were asked badly, or… Anyway, 10% sounded awfull high to me. It also shows how hard it is to conduct meaninful studies. Even a “simple” question, like: “Who will you vote for…?” may be aswered differently. What are the alternatives? For how long the office in question will be held? and so forth. That’s why I’m always wary about all “poll results”. Even few scientists know how to conduct them, let alone reporters…
Being through 3 of those “black devils” (some ex president called depressions that can’t remember who) I know a little about the subject.
Usually some external thing or circumstance causes the depression but where as some people can snap out of it others have something happen to the serotonine(sp) in their brain that keeps them down. IT SUCKS. I would rather die than go though another one. Life has not joy period. The only thing I looked forward to was sleeping that is it.
If anyone out there is depressed, get help. And remember it won’t last forever it will pass. Take it from me. I unfortunately know.
Wildest Bill, Winston Churchill called it his “black dog.” And I’m sorry you get depressed; you’re right, it sucks.
peace - true, studies are often poorly conducted and unreliable, and often poorly reported & misunderstood, to boot. You’re right to mistrust statistics! I think Will Rogers said “there are lies, damn lies, and statistics.” Or words to that effect.
I think the study’s findings are way too low. I suffer from chronic depression, and I see evidence of it all around me (and no, I’m not projecting).
To call it a “black dog” is to trivialize it. For me, it’s like going through life tied into a wheel chair. You know you’re perfectly capable of walking, but you’re tied into that chair nevertheless - and nothing in life is wheel chair accessible.
For me, the treatments, at best, only help me to maneuver the wheel chair a little better, or faster - not to help me get untied.
IMHO, I think everyone goes thru depressive phases, especially after bad life-events, such as a close friend or relative dying or something enviromental, such as SAD. Trust me, there is such a thing as SAD. I live in Wisconsin for 11 years and getting thru December and January can be a bitch!
A few citireon you ought to consider; 1) length of depressive cycles. Do they last for weeks or even months on end? 2) are they chronic? 3) do they have no plausible, external cause? 4) is there chemical/hormonal cause?
I think these will help you sort out true depression from the ups & downs of life.
