Where did it come from? Every article and source I can find seems to indicate that depression has risen steeply in the last 50 years, at least in the west? What has caused people to become so hopeless on a large scale?
Industrialization? Feminism? Families spreading apart for work?
Other urls found in this thread:
nytimes.com
infoplease.com
en.wikipedia.org
vox.com
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
newsweek.com
twitter.com
Developments in psychiatry / healthcare = more people are able to get diagnosed.
There's no sudden "epidemic" of depression.
I'm skeptical about that to be honest, people are offing themselves in record numbers. So being diagnosed has little to do with people actually killing themselves.
nytimes.com
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That seems to prove (if I understood it correctly) the opposite in a bit longer period.
Suicide rate has double from 1950-2010 for kids, teens, and young adults, but it has been stable or decreasing for middle aged and seniors. So I think it is still safe to say that the population is growing increasingly sad.
Moral nihilism.
The media is incentivized to be negative.
Care to explain?
The human psyche is incompatible with postmodern life
Probably a number of factors.
One of the more interesting ones would be Down Regulation. Basically when receptor cites on brain cells get over stimulated they retreat from the synapse. In modern times we are constantly being stimulated with tv, internet, social media, video games, food, drugs, etc. Beyond the physical explanation it makes sense psychologically that once you keep get exposed to something it provides diminishing returns.
I know I have this bad. I'm overstimulated like 14 hours a day. Once I get out of school I plan on moving into the country and using way less technology. Think this is a reversible phenomenon?
Probably, it'll likely take some time to retrain your brain, though, so don't be discouraged if it's not an immediate fix.
It is, but what is really a point? Personally, I would prefer to struggle with all knowledge of the world than to living peaceful life devoid of complex interactions.
I'm sure the real answer is more complicated, but I imagine it's basically this.
I read an article recently about this guy who wrote a book about how many US soldiers who had never been in combat were developing PTSD when they returned to civilian life.
vox.com
It's not like im constantly reading intellectual material. I just work a boring office job, and look at random shit on the internet to pass the time, and a lot of my schoolwork is online. I'm not trying to cut myself off from knowledge, I just don't wanna be bombarded with useless info anymore than I have to be.
Its probably simply due to more opportunities to diagnose.
No one that can diagnose an illness, no one that will go into illness statistics.
People feel without purpose when they are railroaded in life, plus I think this is the only time in mankind since a long time where demand for manpower is less than the availability of it, people feel powerless and without direction in their own lives when they go through education and end up unemployed.
Capitalism is responsible for depression because of alienation
In non-developed societies, you have a sense of purpose in your community.
When you're the only one in your village that makes bread, you know for fact, that if you die, people are going hungry.
Nowadays, especially in the big cities, you are very aware for the fact that you are replaceable.
Even among your friends, they can always find other people that can hang out with.
Plus, families are not as bonded as they used to be, due to work and higher education, so it's really easy for anyone to feel both alienated and alone.
You're not wrong, but I think it is a lot of other factors as well.
You can struggle with hard ideas by reading books in the countryside after gardening and taking care of your animals.
Industrial society in general results in social alienation, not just the capitalist variant.
This makes me wonder: would this spawn some kind of mass philosophy constructed in order to end/severely limit alienation? It sounds pretty interesting a concept, but I am not sure if that something that may happen.
> after gardening and taking care of your animals
Repetitive cycle of mental or a manual labor adds nothing new to life, in my opinion and garden with animals isn't the kind of circle that can be broken easily because you are holding responsibility here.
...
How did they even get that sketch? The real guy looks nothing like that.
Police sketch
People move around less, they sit in cars and trains, at work and at home.
We also eat a lot and are never hungry.
It's like telling your body that the hunt is over and you need to focus on avoiding trouble and rest. Like a bear going into hibernation.
What philosophy am i following if i follow unabomber's word
There are a bunch of factors common in modern society that make us biologically predisposed to depression.
The neurological basis for remaining relatively happy/mentally normal can be greatly simplified as consisting of a few things:
1) regular functioning of hippocampal neurogenesis
2) regular levels of neurotransmitters which activate their respective receptors at the amount/rate they are supposed to
3) a healthy balance between excitatory/inhibitory neuronal activity
4) healthy regulation of neuronal health and activity by the brain's immune cells (glial cells)
A bunch of factors in modern society combine to cause brain inflammation which contributes to causing, helps maintain and further worsens depression/mood issues (and most of the major psychiatric disorders). This brain inflammation if bad enough can become self-sustaining even with a lessening of external factors causing it. Also in everyone it progressively gets worse with age on its own and that combines with the factors already causing it.
Some factors in modern life that cause/worsen/perpetuate inflammation includes:
Oxidative stress, inadequate amounts of sleep, going to bed too late, air pollution, psychological stress, oral problems like cavities etc, obesity, fatty foods, meat consumption, dairy consumption, low consumption of fruits/veggies, most forms of alcohol, exposure to certain heavy metals and industrial chemicals (including some pesticides/herbicides) and when the brain's melatonin synthesis at night is impeded by bright lights and electronic screens.
The brain is highly susceptible to inflammation in the rest of the body, peripheral inflammation quickly and reliably causes brain inflammation. This fucks up the 4 things that are important that were already mentioned by the following processes (not an exhaustive list):
Brain inflammation reduces the synthesis of dopamine, serotonin and several other neurotransmitters while increasing the production/release of glutamate and several other excitatory and neurotoxic molecules. It can also mess with the receptors for important transmitters and cause them to not function properly even when there are appropriate levels of the transmitter needed to activate them.
1) This impedes hippocampal neurogenesis by fucking with the necessary neurotransmitters and their respective receptors and also through increased levels of neurotoxic molecules killing/weakening/preventing the growth of new neurons.
2) The reduced levels of neurotransmitters and the resulting failure to activate their receptors normally causes brain circuits and regions to have their functioning hampered so the brain regions involved in mood, emotions, memory, stress, etc etc all function poorly.
3) Brain inflammation both directly and indirectly through multiple mechanisms detrimentally increases the ratio of excitatory to inhibitory neuronal activity.
4) Brain inflammation disrupts the ability of glial cells to regulate neuronal activity/health and causes them to disrupt the functioning of and also destroy healthy neurons.
All of those things combine to create depression/mood issues. When you have depression/mood issues it causes you to experience psychological stress which can then cause further inflammation in addition to all the other sources of inflammation and it becomes a cycle. Depression isn't all biological but other then working on not getting stressed out by stuff etc the best way to prevent depression is to change your lifestyle to prevent inflammation as much as possible.
Neo-primativism/anarcho-primativism-neo-tribalism
Highly competetive social framework and equally competetive job market that mostly contains unrewarding work. Weak family culture leaving people with little to no safety net emotionally and economically. Increasingly poweful corrupt politicians in bed with megacorporations and the media. Modern food and entertainment leaving people lethargic and passive. A spiritual void where money and status is everything.
Funny you mention that. One time I was just laying there and I literally thought to myself my brain feels inflamed, and looked into anti-inflammatory diet. I think you're onto something.
Nice, though I don't think neurobiology is enough to explain this phenomenon, especially given the fact there are a lot of unknown in this science at the moment.
Overdiagnostication of mental health problems to peddle pills. Same thing happens with ADHD and autism.
Not that anom by IMO we as a society care less and less about shit that used to matter and care more and more about trivial bull shit.
We have forsaken traditional morals and have not fully replaced them. I can see it with women I fuck.
They fuck around for a few weeks then try and entice someone to stay the night, cuddle, watch a movie, something that a couple would traditionally do, but she doesn't want a bf. She wants sex which I give, and then she's very sad and doesn't know why. Its painfully obvious to watch, but I get sex so idgaf, and thanks to my seeing the reasons behind their pain and being slightly sociopathic its very easy for me to stomach.
I fucking love reading edgy self diagnosed sociopath posts.
The science on inflammation and psychiatric issues is actually pretty solid now. Ever since the late 90's there has been increasing interest in it and more and more research to the point now where its basically become its own subdivision of neuroscience. Just in the past decade there has been a huge amount of very solid research done that confirms its a thing and it's now accepted by the mainstream view. However, because all of this has taken place mostly within the last decade the public has not kept up with it. There are occasional articles in magazines about it but its not taught to people in their high school/college health classes unless they pursue neuroscience and so most people are oblivious and don't realize how important it is.
At the same time I agree with you that it does not completely explain the phenomenon. I think there is a huge role that is played by modern culture, economic opportunity, societal pressures, ennui etc. The biological side is just one side of it and it combines with all the other stuff. Also, part of it is that all the non-biological stuff causes stress which then has biological consequences that make people more likely to be depressed and more likely to be further stressed out by the non-biological factors, its all interconnected.
Medications are often prescribed when they don't need to be although its been conclusively proven that the increasing prevalence of Autism can't be explained by over-diagnostication or changes in how diagnoses are made. Autism rates are actually increasing.
I don't know if its been proven that ADHD rates are increasing as well but it has been proven that water fluoridation significantly increases the amount of children diagnosed with ADHD in fluoridated areas and water fluoridation is a very recent phenomenon so in that respect at least there has probably been an increase in ADHD rates compared to before that was common.
The slightly sociopathic part was meant to be sarcasm. Guess it didn't come off like that. Nothing else I said was
>edgy
There is nothing edgy about a 20spmething male fucking dumb sloots
Calling yourself a sociopath and saying you don't care about someone else's sadness that is in part caused by you is edgy. Sorry m8.
Now what if i agree with Ted's analysis and recognise that the pre-industrialised or even tribal society is the ideal one, I disagree with the anarchist, revolutionary face of the manifesto, arguing that a violent revolution to subvert the status quo is not feasible/desireable
Moderate neo-primitivist?
Ideological anarcho-tribalist?
The hell would that make
No change, you just disagree with the best method of implementing "revolution".
I see. Thanks
>mfw a non capitalist society that advances in science usually does not produce alienating technologies
>mfw capitalistic competetivity spurts and incentivises technological advancement like nothing else and we arguably would not have/would never have much of the scientific improvement without it
How do I overcome this stall
>water fluoridation
Stopped reading there. Your post was already making little sense, and then I noticed it's because you're a tinfoil faggot.
Overdiagnostication is real, and so is overmedication.
A "30 year high" is still not that big of a difference. It's just minor fluctuations up and down. pic heavily related
I'm not saying there isn't higher depression rates, necessarily, I just think there isn't much evidence for it.
But sure, if we're being wildly speculative, how about internet addiction? We stare and screens for hours and hours a day, that can't have NO effect on us, I imagine.
Seriously, heavy metals are GOOD for you. Just this one though, consumption of all the others can poison you. Well, fluoride can too, but just a little is GOOD!
Listen, I live in a country where fluoridation of water has been prohibited for over 30 years now. We have the same increase of autism/ADHD diagnostications as any other country.
I would say the most significant thing is lack of exercise and general lethargy
The closer people are to living similarly to hunter-gatherers the more "compatible" their neurochemistry is with every day functioning. Moving further and further towards a modern, sedentary, high-stimulation environment makes it more difficult for biological functions to carry out in the way they evolved towards for hundreds of thousands of years.
I don't think it's anything that can't be counter-acted with the correct measures. People do manage to find true happiness in their en devours, it's just more difficult to learn what suits you considering how much variety there is
I would argue that humans have always been depressed.
However, in the past humans had to deal with just surviving so they didn't have time to complain or go to a therapist.
Also Europeans were always drunk.
I don't know what Muslims did other than rape women and kill infidels. Maybe that is the solution to depression now that I think about it. Crusaders weren't depressed either.
So maybe people were less depressed in the past when they were raping womens and killing heathens/infidels.
You should learn to think critically and not just discount things because the media hasn't mentioned it a lot.
Exposure to fluoridated water and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder prevalence among children and adolescents in the United States: an ecological association
>State prevalence of artificial water fluoridation in 1992 significantly positively predicted state prevalence of ADHD in 2003, 2007 and 2011, even after controlling for socioeconomic status. A multivariate regression analysis showed that after socioeconomic status was controlled each 1% increase in artificial fluoridation prevalence in 1992 was associated with approximately 67,000 to 131,000 additional ADHD diagnoses from 2003 to 2011. Overall state water fluoridation prevalence (not distinguishing between fluoridation types) was also significantly positively correlated with state prevalence of ADHD for all but one year examined.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
WATER FLUORIDATION LINKED TO HIGHER ADHD RATES
>New research shows there is a strong correlation between water fluoridation and the prevalence of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or ADHD, in the United States.
>“The results are plausible, and indeed meaningful,” says Dr. Philippe Grandjean, a physician and epidemiologist at Harvard University. This and other recent studies suggest that we should “reconsider the need to add fluoride to drinking water at current levels,” he adds.
>“The numbers of extra cases associated with a one percent increase in the 1992 artificial fluoridation [figures] are huge,” says William Hirzy, an American University researcher and former risk assessment scientist at the Environmental Protection Agency, who is also a vocal opponent of fluoridation. “In short, it clearly shows that as artificial water fluoridation increases, so does the incidence of ADHD.”
newsweek.com
Society has become too focused on the inner lives of people.
The majority of people in history have always had it bad and lived lives in which they experienced far more suffering than joy. It's just that people simply accepted that was the way things were and went on with life instead of convincing themselves that they had some made-up personality disorder that was making them sad.
we are getting near the next big world war and the collective psyche is getting aware of this
this happened during the big recession in the 1920-1930
/thread
Decline of spirituality and socially constructed purpose. I say this as an atheist
I agree. A little Sabbath, Witchfinder General, Angel Witch, and King Diamond never hurt anybody.
you idiot it's lifestyle changes not just sociology 101
I think this is more of a question for science, but points made by posters like make sense and are another problem, if unrelated to clinical depression.
I was born to a single mother and she was a bit of a tiger/helicopter mom, I am basically a product of this society and about as fucked up as you can be without a serious mental illness. I am everything Veeky Forums hates, full of angst and oversensitivity.
When I was a kid I would cry because of the pressure to learn to play the piano and my mom naturally treated me like "le bad guy" for doing so, treating it like a tantrum and ostracizing me, probably more out of her own frustration than trying to teach me something. After I grew up and escaped, I found a stray piano at community college and discovered I could find the right notes for simple songs like dixie. After classes I would play around with it and got into it more and more, trying to play random songs I listened to and learning how to gauge how far apart notes are. I then decided to look up the notes to more difficult songs and now I'm basically learning to play again, except this time for fun.
I think overstimulation is a problem. We have forgotten how to "get into" things that at first seem boring, or traumatic in my case. I see this all the time, bitches complaining about how some guy's interests are boring. People keep saying I should get a hobby and when I tell them I like to code games in flash they tell me "that is not a real hobby", presumably because they don't find it interesting.
Atomization of late caputalism and women were the first victims. Feminism discourages family formation by promoting what is contrary and now being denied that 1 in 4 women today are on psych meds.
The black plague left people all over depressed.
To me it's the alienation of society. We live in unnatural times, few bothers being social because they might have to be 'forced' in order to do so. Automation has caused work environments to be lonelier.
Is anyone generally happy with their life, and only feeling more content with it as they get older? The awareness that comes with growing up and the higher levels of self control just enable me to enjoy life more and allow me to hold a better perspective on it. I don't get the meme that most modern people have either longing for the simplicity of their childhood or another era
We become progressively more miserable starting in our 20s and well into our 50s, at which point people mellow down and become more content with their lot in life.
I'm 22, I've just come to appreciate that with self control the modern world is almost entirely open to us. The value of my time/labor secures enough resources for me to once or even twice a year explore parts of a different continent. I love medieval stone carving and in my free time I can pursue it, purely for pleasure. I can learn languages and philosophy for free on the internet. I'm even starting to appreciate synthetic materials which I had found distasteful only two years or so ago
I can idealize other ages as much as I want but we are all so shaped by this one that even with a time machine we'd hate it, at best we should appreciate that we like the idealization not the actuality of the past or childhood.
I agree with this
I'm happier than I've ever been and I think our modern age is wonderful even with all of it's downsides. I wouldn't want to live at any other time (aside from maybe the future)