alt Hacker NewsThis comment section is absolutely full of people ready and willing to insist that people with depression simply need to cheer up and get over it. And all I can say is: I hope someone shows them a similar level of compassion when they are at their lowest.
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Sadness is a symptom. Mind/Body is saying something is wrong and it needs to be changed. Medication just dulls the pain. It is not a solution. The real solution is changing the way of life so that it becomes more fulfilling.
Happiness is not a easy thing to achieve. You need to fix the body, eat right, exercise, control/watch your thoughts, let go of things beyond control, enjoy what is in front of you instead of chasing some imaginary future.
It's an awful thing to suffer and full sympathy to anyone who does. What unfortunately has happened as well is that the drug companies have successfully convinced the public, providers and sections of the media that any criticism of their products is criticism of people who suffer.
There are very serious concerns about the safety and effectiveness of these drugs, but the companies consistently attempt to misdirect that, seeking to portray the criticisms as "stigmatizing" sufferers or "fear mongering", neither of which is true.
Most of the problems I would say are related to the modern isolated Nuclear family.
See that programmer sat next to you that is not a nice person? Well some kid had no choice but to have him as a parent.
Throw in a society that doesn’t value teachers and pays them below many other jobs and the kid spends all his day and evenings with no one to guide and nurture him or her.