Depression. What is your take on it.

[teko]

When I was a child, (telling my age here!) someone experiencing depression was unheard of. Maybe it was because to talk about it was not as accepted as it is now? Not sure.  Anyway, I was watching a program about the 7 deadly sins on tv the other night. The program went thru the history of depression. It has been called many things thruout the years and one of them was sloth. There was a time when it was considered evil, casting out demons and such and went thru all the treatments down thru the times to now where it is treated with meds. I was amazed to find out that we know little more about it now then they did then. I have been the victim of this ill thruought the years and was wondering what your views are on it? Did anyone else see this?

[peggy64]

I was talking about people in days gone by.  Not the people in todays society.

I have depression myself. Thank the Lord it is not flaring up at this moment. I do not take medication for it, but that is my decision. And to clarify,  I do not  make any kind of judgement on those that do take it. That is their decision, and their right. Some types of depression have to have medication.

Mine is caused from hormonal imbalances due to hypothyroidism and adrenal fatigue. Depression from these types of issues, are not usually alleviated until the imbalance is corrected.

I believe God can heal anything, but I know when I was in the throes of depression I prayed and prayed, begged and pleaded and it just wouldn't go away.

Depression can come on for many reasons, as I am sure you are aware. I believe God allows us to go through these things for many reasons. Such as to help others, and to have a better understanding of those that have this problem.

But, I do know depression was not such a factor in the days gone by.

[April2]

Same with my daughter. When she rededicated her life to the Lord He released her from the depression and she had peace that she hadn't had in years. God is pretty awesome!

[jollyman069]

i feel depression is a eveil spirit from satan...and as Cheri stated a strong elief in God and there is nothing wrong with going to a dr. I was very blessed when i was in my drug addicition i was severly depressed...but when i rededicated my life to the Lord He took the depression from me   God is Good....God Bless all....brian

[Cherie762]

I am pretty sure the word sloth means sloppy and lazy..not all depressed people are. as April said there are mainy forms of depression..do a search on axis IV thats what I have in a nut shell..situational years and years of emotional abuse and loss of self worth..but its getting sooo much better.

Peggy I had a lot of people tell me "just try to be happy" "pull yourself up by bootstraps' If it was so easy no one would suffer depression/anxiety is often associated w depression.

The cure I believe is going to Church..increasing spirtuality...also a good psychiatrist. some meds and support from friends and family.
Depression used to have a very negative stigma.Now mental health is not called that atleast in Mi psych wards or even psychiatrist office are called Behavioral Management which is exactly what they are

[peggy64]

I think it is because people did not have the luxury of  time to dwell on the harsh realities of their lives. Nor did they have  time to commiserate over all their miseries. They did not sit around watching Oprah and Dr phil and all these other programs making us feel sorry for ourselves.

They had to move on in order to live.

[April2]

I think that there are different degrees and forms of depression. I think sometimes it can be spiritual, in that the person is oppressed or even possessed by evil spirits (usually because the person has opened a door somewhere to allow them in), sometimes the depression is situational, in that the person is depressed because of everything going on around them, and sometimes the depression is chemical, in that the person's body does not produce enough serotonin.
It can be tricky to find out what type of depression the person suffers from and which treatment would work best for that person. Sometimes just having people pray for you can do it. I've heard stories to testify to that. Sometimes the person just needs to get out of the house, exercise, make friends and find something fulfilling in life. Often times anti-depressants need to be tried. Even then, it can take many tries to find something that works.
I just read an article in our paper this week that I found interesting. They did a study and said that people with mild to moderate depression don't seem to benefit from the anti-depressants, though it does seem to work for severe depression.
You're right, I think there's still much to learn about it.
Like you, I've noticed we seem to have an increase in numbers of people with depression. I think that's partly because it's being diagnosed more now. Back in the "old days" they used to just institutionalize someone. Mental illness has probably always been around but it's being treated differently now, it's more open now.
But I also believe that we are seeing more depression in general. Why? I think as a society we are becoming more and more isolated. Back in the old days people used to support each other more. Mothers would get together for coffee and watch each other's children play. Now days most mothers work. More and more we are seeing computers and technology replace human interaction. I think that is just causing more of the isolation.
I believe God made us to need each other. He never meant for us to be alone or isolated.
I also believe there's more stress today than ever before. It's interesting that we have technology that can get things done faster yet we are working longer hours and becoming more and more stressed. Why is that? Because we try to multi-task, which is very stressful to begin with. Even as technology advances more and more, we are trying to do more and more too. And we get more and more stressed. It's a vicious circle.
We don't take the time to rest like we should. They say our sleep has been shortened over the years. We don't take our vacations as much anymore. Maybe because we're afraid of losing our jobs. But all of this comes at a cost and that cost is the damage all that stress does to the body. And you know what too much stress becomes over time? Depression.
I don't think I'd call depression sloth, though. I think God understands. Even his prophets had times of depression.  Elijah, Jeremiah, Joshua, Job, to name a few. I love how God treated Elijah when he ran away after having a major victory for God and told God he wanted to die. God sent an angel who encouraged him to eat, drink and rest. Oftentimes, that's what we need the most, to just rest up and rejuvenate. God never admonished any of His prophets when they fell into depression. He provided for them and urged them to move forward.
I think God understands us better than we do ourselves.