It’s like Tolstoy’s unhappy families – all different.

Excuse me – MY moods? What are you talking about?

I said nothing whatsoever about myself and my moods or lack thereof. I haven’t even said what side I come down on in this discussion – whether I believe that depression is a disease or not. I have merely indicated that I think it’s a valid question on which reasonable and knowledgeable people differ. Nor have I even said whether I think therapy usually helps major depression.

You’re not using much logic here and not paying attention. Perhaps it is you with the emotional investment in your point of view, going by what you state in the last paragraph of your most recent comment.

In addition, profound depression (as opposed to ordinary depression) is not a simple matter of moodiness. It is something quite different. As such, it does not ordinarily respond well to talk therapy.

Neo, you’ve elected to define your moods as a disease. That there are chemical processes going on in your head at the same time is immaterial. There are chemical processes going on as a matter of course in your head, in your abdomen, and in every other part of your body. If you have an actual ailment (1) you die or (2) you are not functioning normally. The thing is, a variety of emotional states and temperaments are simply part of the human repertoire.

There’s a whole industry devoted to ‘treating’ these problems. I’ve not noticed they’re having much success with palpable manifestations of misery (e.g. the frequency of suicide), but I suppose the counter-factual is we’d be in even worse shape without their presence.

I should mention that we have among our kith and kin several examples of the mental health and social work industry. As far as their general wisdom, I’d say they’re all perfectly meh. I cannot help but note as well as we’ve had in our social circle several heavy users of their services. It’s a way of life.

The origins of clinical depression and how much contribution is made by the strictly organic is still an open question. Good to hear that you have somehow come up with the definitive answer, all by your lonesome.

…as he sipped his coffee and nibbled on croissants and brioches in the best cafes in Paris….

He’s talking book.

Our academics amuse themselves by gaslighting others. The whole ‘transgender’ craze is a manifestation of this, as is much of what passes for ‘constitutional law’. The notion that your moods are a disease (except in a metaphorical sense) is another. You wanna be a sucker, your problem, not mine.

Sometimes I think you say these silly things just to get other people to disagree with you.

People’s bodies are designed to go on for quite some time after they reproduce, barring infectious diseases or accidents. There are theories about this, but one is that there are benefits to families and child-rearing to have older people around to help raise kids and to impart some of their hard-earned wisdom. To do this, a person couldn’t be particularly depressed.

As for Africans who are depressed, just because Zaphod hasn’t met one doesn’t mean they don’t exist (or perhaps you’re a solipsism devotee?). See this, for example. One thing about Africa, though, is that they have so many other problems there that depression isn’t studied very often. When they talk to people, they find that it certainly exists, however (See this:

Adults in a village in Lesotho, Africa, were interviewed to determine the community prevalence of major depression, panic disorder, and generalised anxiety disorder. The prevalence data were compared with data from a large epidemiological study in the United States utilising the same research instrument. There was a significantly higher prevalence of all three diagnoses in Lesotho as compared with the United States. As in the United States, women were at an increased risk for these disorders, although statistical significance was not demonstrated for depression. The majority of people (77%) who had experienced panic attacks said they had sought help for their symptoms, with the majority attending Western-trained doctors. The relationship between explanatory models and help-seeking behaviour was explored in people who had had panic attacks. Less than 40% of those with generalised anxiety disorder said they sought help.

I find your thought far more speculative and less persuasive than Sapolsky’s.

One doesn’t have to be 35+ to hit serious depression. Is it not possible that modern civilization stresses people in ways different than the less modern world?

And so on.

Take a listen to Sapolsky, if you’re interested, and see what you think.