I work and live with people who think depression is a "spiritual" or personal lifestyle problem. I think they are wrong.
I lost a sister to cancer when she was 15, my brother to probably suicide when he was 19 and my son died of cancer at 12. I seriously can say I never had a day of depression. I have had a broken heart missing them and feeling the pain. I will cry for them (I did for my son on Sunday while I was unloading groceries (Go figure)) But I have never lost the taste of food nor anything else. I have sorrow but their is a root cause for that. Depression is sorrow with no real root cause (to me). So I usually come out to defend people who are depressed since I feel like I should be the kind of depression but have never experienced it due to the luck of my genetics.
I think you really illustrate the difference between depression and sadness. Depression I imagine is like experiencing dulled senses, a vapid gray world of numbness. While sorrow and sadness are incredibly vivid emotions that can overpower us, like when they struck you so suddenly unloading groceries. I'm so sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharing such personal information.
(I am the OP on going through loss and sadness and not being depressed.)
Yes 100% correct. Just like if you have heart disease or a bad back their are non-medical activities that will help those medical condition. My statement is that their is a medical piece that people discount and/or actually dismiss. A person can't just "fix themselves" and having the medical piece help them with treatment with counseling is a big help. Depression isn't that your sad.
Depression Definition: Clinical depression is a mood disorder in which feelings of sadness, loss, anger, or frustration interfere with everyday life for weeks or more.
Symptoms of depression include:
Low mood or irritable mood most of the time
Trouble sleeping or sleeping too much
A big change in appetite, often with weight gain or loss
Tiredness and lack of energy
Feelings of worthlessness, self-hate, and guilt
Difficulty concentrating
Slow or fast movements
Lack of activity and avoiding usual activities
Feeling hopeless or helpless
Repeated thoughts of death or suicide
Lack of pleasure in activities you usually enjoy, including sex
I feel like the massively connected nature of modern society is directly responsible for flourishing depression. Odds are, you are redundant; if most people disappeared suddenly, someone else could probably pick up the pieces in fairly short order. Additionally, being hyper-connected means that whatever you're good at, it is probably easy to find examples of people who are much better at it than you, which can be be somewhat marginalizing. Not feeling necessary or exceptional in any way is a pretty sure fire recipe for angst.
The nasty thing about depression is that it is a self-reinforcing cycle. When you start to get depressed, your ability to take measures to address the root cause of the depression is impacted. The result is a downward spiral that results in self obviation, through suicide, self destructive behavior or substance abuse.
People tend to mix up pleasure and happiness and think meditation provides the first.
Meditation, just like a psychedelic experience, can show you where you stand in life, and this can be scary. One can find out that they've been doing things wrong all their life, or realize that they are on a destructive path. The changes required might affect their spouse, children, friends or their job, creating a seemingly impossible dilemma, to go on and keep suffering, or to change and hurt others.
The key difference between meditation and psychedelics is regularity. Psychedelics are more like antibiotics in that they can be used in short bursts to shock the system but meditation should be used continually like a vitamin.
Some things can be too fast and unlock too much at once. This is where regular, consistent, meditation helps quell the unrest and let you tackle things at a sane pace. I had to work through those bouts of heavy depression, but now I can do very spiritual events and benefit from them.
Incorrect. Meditation helps to find balance, meaning, sort out things, but in a same way as it won't cure cancer, it won't cure clinical depression, or broken arm.
> it's just a tool
Tools are a means.
> to see what's already there
That is also a means. (Unless one is merely curious.)
> blissful or happy
To arrive at-rest/contenment with Reality. At which point the distinction between "happy"/"unhappy" is understood to be nil.