The mind
The brain, or more correctly what we can call "the mind", is one of life's great mysteries. We know a lot of about how the brain works in purely mechanical terms. We can look at its cells and get an idea of how the cells "talk" to each other. We can even see how the brain works when there is increased activity in some parts of the brain. This can happen when you are doing simple things such as feeling or smelling. We also know that depression can be treated with medicine or discussions with a psychologist or psychiatrist.
What is the mind?
We know a lot about the brain. But we don't know how or why thoughts or feelings are formed. We don't know why we think. The French philosopher Descartes was responsible for the famous saying "I think, therefore I am", but it is actually more accurate to say "I am conscious, therefore I am."
We live and exist in our minds. As far as you are concerned, you don't really exist if you are unconscious. Yet you will still exist for others. They can see your physical body which can still live.
Your brain "lives" when we can measures its activity. But when you are unconscious, you do not exist as far as you are concerned. In this way, the mind is by far the most important part of how you perceive your own existence. It is the inner "you". Without the inner "you", you don't exist. We could rewrite Descartes in the following way: "If I am not conscious, I don't exist."
When something goes wrong with the mind
When something goes wrong with your mind, you are no longer yourself. Your "being" is harmed and directly threatened. You cannot run from the threat, because it is in you own innermost self. It is of course horrible.
Is it any wonder that these threats cause an inner stigma, taboo and rejection? It is important to get rid of the outer stigmas and taboos, but it is more important that we get rid of the inner stigmas. This is because they make you refuse to accept the depression and get the right treatment.
What do you do now?
We hope that you have found (or are finding) the necessary information here at DepNet to git rid of your stigmas and taboos. You can "cure" the stigmas and taboos that affect you from within by acquiring a knowledge of depression. When you have cured these inner stigmas, you can seek help. And when you see and understand the depression, you can do something about it.
The mystery of the mind lives on. The riddle will undoubtedly not be solved soon. What is important is that you do not need to solve the mystery in order to overcome the problems that affect it. We must not allow the mystery to create stigmas, taboos and myths which prevent us from seeing clearly and using our knowledge of the brain. We believe that the mystery of the mind is also behind many of the external stigmas and taboos that are linked to mental illnesses, including depression.
As people, we instinctively understand the role that the mind and our consciousness of "ourselves" plays. We are therefore more or less forced to focus on the mystery of the mind. And as with other mysteries, myths, taboos and stigmas are created in order to explain and deal with the mystical, particularly when something has gone wrong.
Tolerance
We are not always particularly tolerant towards those who are "different". We become almost afraid of those who seem "mentally sick". They are branded as "crazy". There is also a tendency to do the same with people who
- have a different skin colour
- have a different religion
- support the wrong football team
When we brand people who are suffering from depression as "different", it causes depressed people not to admit to themselves or others that they are suffering from an illness of the mind.
It is easier to go to the doctor with an "ordinary" illness than an illness of the mind. Your brain can therefore cause you to feel pain or exhausted, or any other "legitimate ailment" which you can go to the doctor with.
Those closest to you often want to accept the figments of the imagination which say that "you do not have an illness of the mind". This is because they are also aware of the stigma that is linked to mental illnesses. They don't want to see the illness in those closest to them. So the stigma lurks around in the darkest nooks and crannies of the mind. Taboos often stop us all from dealing with the illness directly and rationally.
But there are some who do not accept these figments of the imagination. It is often those who are not so close to you. It could be your colleagues or your boss.
They want you to be able to do your job. This is reflected in the fact that those suffering from depression are more often unemployed than other people. They also find it more difficult to get work and are more likely to do badly at school.