A Book about Depression

Lost Connections by Johann Hari

My guess is that most of us know someone who struggles with depression or anxiety.  Maybe we are that someone.  If you or someone you care about has paid a visit to the doctor about depression or anxiety, chances are high that you were prescribed an antidepressant for your trouble.  In Lost Connections, Mr. Hari seeks to give real life reasons for our depression and anxiety and to propose solutions that are not solely based on medication.  Some of the causes for depression and anxiety that he includes are lost connections to people, nature, meaningful work, meaningful values, etc.

I liked the fact that he did give real solutions for each of the lost connections (gardening, group projects/volunteering, changing jobs, etc.).  I like that the power for our own healing is put back into our hands and that this is a long term solution, a more permanent solution than a little pill can give.  

I didn't agree with everything that was put forth in this book.  I think changing jobs may not be the answer for everybody who wants "meaningful work" for example.  I think that some of us (not all) need to change our attitude about our jobs and see the meaning that they have and give to us and to the people around us.  

Here's a quote from the book:

An antidepressant, they have learned, isn't just a pill.  It's anything that lifts your despair.  The evidence that chemical antidepressants don't work for most people shouldn't make us give up on the idea of an antidepressant.  But it should make us look for better antidepressants - and they may not look anything like we've been trained to think of them by Big Pharma.

I absolutely recommend this book to you.  It is definitely worth our time to think carefully about how we take care of ourselves and those we love.  I hope you'll come back and share your thoughts on the ideas presented in this book.

Until next time...