Charting the Depths

The long run outcome of deep depression is typically cruel: Depression leaves a dull hangover of residual symptoms in its wake. Episodes of deep depression are prone to recur. Yet a subgroup of sufferers beats these odds. Read More

While depression is often recurrent, there is a suprisingly large and special subgroup of the depressed who defy the odds and have only a single lifetime episode. A recent analysis by Scott Monroe and Kate Harkness estimate that about half of those with a first episode will *never* have a return of depression in their lifetime. Read More

The existence of SLEDs are a ray of hope in the dark world of depression. Read More

From Albania to Zanzibar, countries differ in many ways--in their history, culture, ethnic makeup, climate, and economic power, among others. Do countries also differ in their psychiatric health? In their propensity to mood disorders, anxiety disorders, or schizophrenia? This is a simple question, but one that is surprisingly challenging to answer. Read More

For sure, parents can become depressed after the birth of a child. And not just mothers. Fathers too. But does this mean that post-natal depression should be recognized as a unique syndrome? Read More

Are there human-specific pathways into depression that explain our species' special vulnerability? Read More

Increasingly, our epidemiology demonstrates that depression has several phases, each with distinct characteristics. Acknowledging these phases, depicted in the figure above, yields insights, but also points to new research and clinical challenges. Read More

Peer support for depression is low cost and low tech, but it seems to work. Read More

Why the label minor depression is something of a misnomer. Read More

How does depression start? What are its warning signs?

It turns out that we know almost nothing about the depressive prodrome Read More

The outlook for funding of depression research is not very bright. Read More

A great new memoir shows society's misunderstandings of depression... and how it is possible to overcome them. Read More

What could ever be wrong with pursuing happiness to the fullest extent possible? Read More

On August 5th, thirty-three men were trapped beneath the earth in a Chilean mine. They were trapped for seventeen days with no contact with the outside world, with only two days of food between them. Read More