Category Archives: Social Science

Managing Depression, Part III

The discussion continues regarding the list of tips I posted on how to manage depression. Chad raised some concerns and questions, sincerely and thoughtfully presented. In response to a comment someone left on his blog, he raises another question — an excellent one, though I don’t have an answer.

I want to say this nicely and eloquently, but I can’t, so I’m going to resort to bluntness. Is management of depression achievable or is it mere deception for the depressed?

I think that there are infinite levels of depression and all of them are difficult to measure with any sort of metric. It seems to me that an individual can go through several different levels on any given day. If the depressed individual follows this list, some other list, or the Atkins diet, is there any way to effectively measure the result?

Being Kind Feels Good

Wry and charming Sheila wrote a post about a concept dear to my heart: practicing kindness. Some call it karma. Others relate it to the Christian scripture about reaping what one sows. The folk adage, “You catch more flies with honey than vinegar” is another way of putting it. Regardless of how it’s articulated, it’s really rather easy to be kind. We have more time and energy to extend ourselves than we realize, once we become aware of the value of kindness.

Last week, the electric company sent a bill which included that of someone else in our neighborhood. I put it in an envelope with a short note explaining the situation and mailed it. It took less than five minutes, and I felt good knowing that she would be spared the hassle of tracking it down or paying late fees. To my surprise and pleasure, I received a note thanking me for taking the time. The “thank you” was a bonus. My motivation wasn’t to get reciprocation; it just felt good to do this.

There is a trait that is essential to the expression of kindness: empathy. It is the ability to imagine what another person is thinking, feeling, or experiencing and acting compassionately in response.

We are motivated to do good because it feels good. There’s nothing wrong or selfish in feeling good. Healthy good feeling is essential to altruism.

There is even a website, Random Acts of Kindness, which provides ideas and activities for use in classrooms and small groups. Positive interaction lightens the spirit, improves relationships, and probably promotes good physical health. Be inspired!

Post Nuptial Depression

A wedding is a formal public celebration of commitment. Unfortunately, many couples get caught up in the idea of the wedding as an end in itself and don’t focus on what follows: marriage, a new beginning. When this is combined with significant debt from the celebration, the result is often discontent. From This is London:

‘There is no happy ever after,’ declared Mr. Hodson. ‘Weddings are an out-of-date ritual that offer nothing concrete to the modern independent woman but are still sold as an answer to every dissatisfaction she might have with her life.’

He said PND is on the increase. ‘It is a modern phenomenon that is very widespread,’ he said. ‘It ranges from vague discontent to full-scale depression. Left untreated it can go on indefinitely, getting more ingrained.’

Grooms have also reported being hit by the blues, but it seems that women are more likely to be affected as they tend to have a stronger emotional investment in marriage.

The cost of weddings can also leave couples with financial problems as they start their lives together. ‘But more significant are the hopes and fantasies invested in the wedding,’ added Mr. Hodson.

Austin Blogger Meetup

Next week’s Meetup, as I recall, is going to be at Mozart’s. At the last meeting, we identified locations for the next four months, and I wrote them down someplace. As soon as I find the list, I’ll post them too. The reason we’re breaking from the official Meetup locations is that they are often unsuitable for our size group (too small) or simply unconducive to conversation (competing with two musical acts at one location confirmed that).

For those unfamiliar with what I’m talking about, check out Meetup: Organizing local interest groups.

[Update: Found the list! Starting with next month: October, Opal Divine’s on 6th St.; November, Flightpath Coffeehouse; and December, Texspresso on Anderson Lane.]

Deep Discount Prescription Services Shut Down

Rx Depot, a company that provides mail-order prescription service from Canadian pharmacies to U.S. residents, will be forced to cease doing business on September 11.

Rx Depot ordered to close stores
By THERESA AGOVINO
The Associated Press

MIAMI – The Justice Department has ordered Rx Depot to close up shop, as the Bush administration is seeking to close stores that help consumers buy cheaper drugs from Canada.

In a letter Tuesday to Rx Depot’s president, Carl Moore, the Justice Department said it will sue Moore unless he agrees by Thursday to shut down the company’s 85 stores.

Read more here. A copy of the FDA warning letter is available here.

Now really, what are the uninsured and elderly on Medicare supposed to do in order to obtain medication when costs continue to spiral out of control?

Howl at the Moon

I took a walk tonight. The nearly full moon looked like a cool mint candy, tantalizingly close, seeming to follow me as I walked. (Do you remember believing as a child that the moon followed you when, for instance, you sat in the back seat of your parents’ car coming home from someplace?)

The moon is a muse for poetry and stories, and it plays a role in our natural cycles (e.g., the ocean tides). However, as much as we might wish, studies indicate that the full moon effect on people’s behavior is minimal. For every study that finds a correlation between the full moon and an increase in dog bites, for example, another study finds no correlation. And one tenet we were taught in graduate school is… say it all together now… “Correlation does not imply causation.”

Nonetheless, anecdotes do make more interesting conversations, which is probably why full moon tales abound despite no evidence to support them. The tequila maker Jose Cuervo sponsored a psychiatrist to study the relationship between the full moon and odd behavior in literature. The psychiatrist’s conclusion is one that most logically explains (to me at least) why such lore is popular:

The psychiatrist, Glenn Wilson, found that the full moon has been portrayed in folklore and legends for centuries as cause for celebration, particularly in the times before modern lighting.

“There is good reason to believe that people’s personalities do change around the time of the full moon, not because of any astronomical force, but because it creates the optimum lighting conditions for feeling carefree and mischievous,” Wilson told the paper.

Regardless of whether the moon really has the power to incite strange behavior, it is a joy to behold. Tomorrow it will be full; be sure to step outside and spend a little time looking heavenward. If you really look, you might just see the man in the moon. *wink*

The Uses of Hopelessness

I’ve been mining my file cabinets, perusing papers I wrote and articles I read in graduate school, and I came across one that has always intrigued me: The uses of hopelessness (American Journal of Psychiatry — Abstracts: Bennett and Bennett 141 (4): 559).

It would seem that to consider the utility of hopelessness is antithetical to my profession. Indeed, much of what I do is nurture hope and connection in someone who is unable to summon or create it, and facilitate his growth and healing so he can nourish himself. So isn’t promoting hopelessness destructive?
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