I got a message from someone asking about depression. Obviously the person will go unnamed, but the question they asked was an extremely good one that is worth repeating here:
Anon said:
Hi Anon,
Firstly I don't know if you're suffering from depression or not, but if you are then it's important that you realise that there is a lot of help out there for you. Help that will be a million times better than anything I can give you, too, and it's equally important that you know this. The kind of psychology I do is not related, whatsoever, to mental health. If you are feeling low, sad or any other way negatively impacted, you can and should seek help from a qualified professional.
With that said, I can offer you this: depression can be reactionary, this is to say that something might happen in your life that causes you to feel that way. It is a perfectly normal reaction, too, not at all something you should be ashamed about. In some people, depression can arise without a real reason or cause, and is linked to chemical imbalances occurring in the brain. We're not really quite sure which chemicals are key in regulating clinical wellbeing, but one often cited is serotonin.
I also feel the need to say this: there are a few people that will try to tell you depression isn't real, and this simply isn't true. It is a real illness, with real effects, and absolutely isn't a sign that you are weak or a failure. In fact, many famous leaders have suffered with depression like Gandhi, Lincoln and Churchill. Einstein suffered long periods of depression, and it has also affected many in the arts. Depression occurs in people of any age, and is actually quite a common mental health issue. About 15% of people will have a bout of depression during their lives that is severe enough to warrant a clinical intervention. I would argue this number is actually much higher, but unfortunately confounded because many people that suffer from the illness don't get help or aren't formally diagnosed.
In short, what I'm trying to say is that we honestly aren't certain what causes depression, but what we
are certain about is that it can be normal and, in some cases, a healthy response to factors in our lives. Sometimes this isn't the case, or sometimes we become overwhelmed by the factors, and if this is what's worrying you then there is help available, you aren't alone and there is always someone willing to listen.
I hope you're well.