The Myth of Depression - Introduction

Depression is a myth. Depression is but a state of mind or mentality, a feeling or perhaps no feeling, some dark thoughts, negative beliefs, or a low mood. From this state of mind nothing seems worthwhile because what felt good previously doesn’t feel good any more. Perception becomes distorted. Many symptoms occur. The list of symptoms pertaining to a medical diagnosis of depression is growing all of the time. If we look at this list of symptoms commonly known by doctors, physicians, psychiatrists and health workers we realise all of these many ‘symptoms of depression’ are actually common daily experiences. Nonetheless, when we have a certain number of these at the same time or they cease to go away within a certain time frame we are considered to have depression.

Therefore, the term ‘depression’ becomes a generic word, a ‘catch-all’ for a whole list of symptoms that can be in any number of combinations and identified in many different ways. This is not to say that the symptoms are not real. The feelings, the behaviour and the observations are definitely real and we should take notice of them. Each of the symptoms is a uniquely felt experience, which is painful or disturbing, but when we try to add them all up and give them a name we are only adding one more problem, the problem of labeling. With the label ‘depression’ we do a deep disservice to ourselves and others as we must then prescribe treatments in the form of pills and a bit of therapy. And when we try to tease out all the elements behind the label and take it all apart to identify all the origins we will only in the end find that the bogey-man of 'depression' never really existed at all in the first place. Many mind conditions exist extending from just having a blue day right through to severe loss of connection with one's own mind.

Loss of appetite, anxiety, insomnia, over sleeping, lack of concentration, loss of libido, agitation, sadness, feelings of hopelessness, indecisiveness, despair, fatigue, physical pains the causes of all these symptoms, when looked at more deeply, do not relate to this label – ‘depression’. These disturbing painful conditions all arose separately and affected our mental, emotional physical and mind states due to earlier and present day experiences and how we as individuals responded or failed to respond to them. That is why I say that depression is a myth.