John,
“What do you mean by applied accusation? I do not think you are here to burden or blame anyone, and I agree with your reason for posting in the first place.”
Well, in your previous post you wrote: “something that might actually lead to helping people out of depression, instead of trying to put a burden on others.”. As you were responding to my post and I did not see any other posts that seemed apt candidates for “trying to put a burden on others”, I had the impression it therefore applied to me. Consider the point sufficiently clarified.
“I believe anyone without a physical cause for depression (such as brain damage) is able to overcome depression someway somehow eventually, regardless of the method used. ”
I tend not to agree with this, but like you say, it can be argued either way and there will likely never be enough evidence to prove the case convincingly one way or another. If you’d added “to some extent” after “someway somehow”, I’d agree more. If you’d added “if they really want to”, I’d have agreed unconditionally, but then, we already agree that to “really want” is not merely a necessary precondition, but in the case of combating depression often a sufficient one (though I willl continue to disagree on the billionaire front, which also requires a great deal of blind luck, in my view).
“While I understand that someone who has been depressed for a very long time (not directed at anyone in particular, just in general) may interpret positive thoughts of recovery as something that just gets people hopes up, there are also people who interpret those positive thoughts as an encouragement that allows them to change”
I don’t for a minute disagree with this. What I disagree with is any implied message that it’s either easy, or can be done by anyone in any situation.
I have actually fought my way mostly out of depression succesfully a few times; I have won at least two major campaigns combating it in my lifetime. After the first, some decades ago, I very slowly slid back over the period of a decade, through lack of positive reinforcement. I enjoyed some parts of life, but the negative still stubbornly kept outweighing positive experiences. The last time was two years ago, fought over 6 months with the help of a competent and strongly empathetic therapist. I beat most of the depression, only to find that I had no desire left for life, or anything in it, even without what I consider to be clinical depression. So after that, in a period of a mere few months, I allowed myself to lapse (and was aware of this) into old patterns of thought and habits. There is a comfort, a numbness to be found in depression, that does function as an anesthetic against the pain of life.
And today I could not fight my way out of a wet paper bag, let alone my depression.
My point in mentioning this is that I believe that victories against depression can be achieved; but in my experience this in no way guarantees the victories will be permanent, or that mere victory over depression brings happiness. Also, these victories never come cheap, if you are truly in a multi-year depression.
I have contradictory reactions on various levels to whatever is said on this subject and these are emotional; not primarily rational. I realise I am not consistent in my posts here. So be it.
Regards,
Ron.
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