Why are more people thesedays clinically depressed than they were around the time of world war II despite the difficulties of the time? I want an interesting discussion
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ANSWERS: 20
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I don't think there are necessarily more clinically depressed people now. I just think it's become more acceptable to talk about and reach out for help now.
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Cause in the depression people couldnt afford to see a doctor Suicide rates actually climbed to a high During WWII people were very busy and life wasnt that bad anymore as the federal government regulated prices
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we have health care insurance so now more people can be clinically diagnosed as being depressed.
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Times are much more complex today than they have ever been before. My grandfather didn't have to worry about how to roll a 401K over into a tax defered IRA on his lunch hour, while having a phone conference with 3 department heads, and trying to pick up his dry cleaning at the same time.
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Depression wasn't taken very seriously until only recently. Way back in the dark ages, you know, before the internet, the common practice was to wait for people to have nervous breakdowns before anyone did anything about it. Depression was rarely recognized or dealt with. The influence of money can never be underestimated. With newer happy drugs now on the market, there is a greater push to diagnose depression so that someone can sell pills.
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People go to the doctors in todays society, they didnt back then. -
years ago people werent really diagnosed as depressed or they didnit see doctros so no one knew about it these days healthcare is free and depression is easier to spot, also with some doctors it an easy way to escape helping someone with a mental illness
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yes the fact that not as many people didn't actually get diagnosed accounts for some but I think that as overall knowledge level increases depression goes up as well. I mean ignorance is bliss and look at how much we learn at earlier ages now compared to back then.
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i am not too sure if it is true that most people are depressed today but may be because they North Americans Want to live the best lives , like have millions, be perfect in everyway. But they should be happy they are living in a place where everything comes soo easy ex, food, shelter,wants.... Imagine what the people in Africa go through. They would kill to live here
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well maybe the same amount were but its just that more ppl are trying to get help now and want to get better when back then ppl just liked to keep things to themselfs their is no clear cut answer to your question only possiblities and possibly more then one answer cld b the cause
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a suspect a couple of things. 1 - lots more mental health professionals diagnosing what was depression back then but we didn't say it or know it. 2 - it's much more socially acceptable to have depression today than it was then. 3 - pharmaceutical companies makes tens of billions of dollars if there's lots of depression whereas they only make billions of dollars if there's only a little depression. 4 - hormones injections and genetic mutations of animals / meats and veggies and fruit. 5 - we're a mobile society in which we rarely live close to grandma and ma and uncle willy and sis which makes it more difficult to be married successfully, raise kids, etc. 6 - we watch jerry springer and the lifetime movie channel that makes us more depressed. 7 - electronic information technologies make accessing information easier and, we compare ourselves to others we didn't used to know about - the truly exceptional people.
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Depression isn't caused by bad things happening, it's a chemical imbalance. Life is a lot different now so it makes sense that our bodies are more out of whack. More babies being fed formulas from factories, more pesticides then you can shake a stick at being consumed daily by everyone, and no where near the amount of just plain human social interaction. I think those things are to blame for our bodies behaving the way they are for the most part.
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They grew up in a totally different society. People were not nearly asmobile& lived with or near an extendedfamily: an important emotionalresourse. Also men strongly believed it cowardly& weak to not deal with your own problems. Although some stresswas caused by the pressures of the times,for many they obviateddepressionastheywere so busy & active dealing with day to day activities.
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There are several reasons. 1. I'm not too sure that was even a diagnosis/term used during WWII (60 to 70 years ago). 2. People didn't know to go to a doctor if they were feeling that way. 3. Therefore, they couldn't be reported as having the problem. 4. There were no drugs for clinical depression until the late 50's or 1960. 5. Earlier than that aspirin and alcohol were the drugs of choice. 6. People were caught up in helping win the war, If they sat on their butt and did nothing constructive, others would support them and spur them to action. (bring them out of their depression) 7. Society was positive about winning the war and not depressed about it. Depression was less because there were more positives instead of "woe is me." attitudes.
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Overpopulation leads to more suicides and depression. This is a well known fact. Plus the other answers are correct about not diagnosing it. People were always told it's all in your head, as if that meant it didn't exist. There was a big disincentive to admitting to being depressed called the looney bin. They faced electric shock treatment, lobotomy, and other such horrors.
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Breakdown of the family unit, these days ppl spread out and move away from their families, often work-related. More stress in the work environment, ppl are pushed and pushed to be more 'productive. These days ppl are also in much more debt than in other generations, thanks to credit cards the temptation to live 'beyond our means' is so much easier. Society is also a lot less friendly than it used to be, withy neighbours often just on grunting terms with each other. Respect for each other and for the elderly has totally gone, leading to a more seemingly meaningless life. People are also able to admit to depression these days, whereas in the old days, it was something to be ashamed of and 'swept undr the carpet.
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because drs get paid to prescribe medications
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I think there are many reasons that could be given to answer this question but the one that seems to stick in my mind is that Depression wasn't even classified as an illness until the relatively recent past. People who suffered from Depression and many other psychological and mental health problems were classified as "troubled" or "unwell" and kind of swept under the rug.
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People today can more easily isolate themselves from others when they are down. This most likely exacerbates the situation. Also WWII era there was the common bond of that world event. Social(or other)isolation was not a viable option then.
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Depression is a loss of vitality and feeling of detachment. Today we are more aware, overwhelmed and often less connected to reality; nature, art, beauty, our values, passion, compassion, and the rationality that we are each integral and interconnected.
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