Are depressed people "more intelligent"

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studies apparently show links between depression and intelligence
people interpret this as "intelligent ppl are depressed because they see the world as it really is"
i believed this when i was depressed and justified my depression in this way - i now no longer think it's true and could argue that intelligent people know how to be happy. or more likely, depression affects people regardless of intelligence.
& i would pick happiness & unintelligence over unhappiness and intelligence anyday

wbu?

[FlyingJesus]

Correlation isn't causation, this is the same as when you get those facebook posts going round like "people who are intelligent swear lots and are messy!!!!!" and all the thickest people you know repost it

[Catchy]

surely just coincidence as lots of people suffer from depression at some stage in their lives.

[Stephen]

tbh i understand why depressed people can see the world as it really is but I can't explain it without sounding crazy
but then again i would think you were crazy if you thought my explanation was crazy :¬:

happiness and "normality" are an illusion, you need to feel the other side of that to understand fully how the psych really works and
once you understand that then things seem clearer

[buttons]

tbh i understand why depressed people can see the world as it really is but I can't explain it without sounding crazy
but then again i would think you were crazy if you thought my explanation was crazy :¬:

happiness and "normality" are an illusion, you need to feel the other side of that to understand fully how the psych really works and
once you understand that then things seem clearer
jst explain? how do u determine who sees the world "as it really is" when the world is diff for each person

what about people for me who have been depressed and are now happy

[Red]

I'm not sure on intelligence but think it's more to do with the fact they are probably of a type a personality; Being self-critical/perfectionists/overachievers.

[Stephen]

jst explain? how do u determine who sees the world "as it really is" when the world is diff for each person

what about people for me who have been depressed and are now happy

your whole life is based on memories
everyone was once a jumble of everything possible but then as you grew up you were made into who you are and you are now who you were made into from that

think of like a blend of every emotion, feeling etc but as you go through life all those feelings/emotions branch out into a seperate state so instead of happiness sadness combined now you feel happiness and sadness into 2 different things

and from that if you can seperate every emotion and have experienced the shitty depressed no hope feeling then you can separate it from that core "everything" feeling and understand that part of shitiness is a part of life that some people haven't experienced before so therefore you know more than them which doesn't make sense but it makes sense to me

hard to explain but also probably sounds crazy but makes sense to me :Thumbs-Up:

[buttons]

makes sense yeah but if u think people who have experienced the shitty part of life and know "more", how do u explain people who find happiness after that?

[FlyingJesus]

Having a greater range of experiences doesn't make one more intelligent anyway though, I mean look at people like Honey Boo Boo and others who are basically famous for being dumb as it gets but through their fame they've had a billion more experiences than I ever will - doesn't make them any smarter it seems.

Also Jacob brought up a good point (who'd have thought it); depression is for most people something that's very much temporary. If that's the case do you lose intelligence if you recover?

[buttons]

Also Jacob brought up a good point (who'd have thought it); depression is for most people something that's very much temporary. If that's the case do you lose intelligence if you recover?
see that's my point, me saying "hey im going to get help for my depression and work really hard on being positive and making positive changes to my life and attitude because i dont want to be depressed anymore" imo makes me intelligent. i didn't become unintelligent by making that choice and if i did then it beats being depressed lol

[Shar]

I think everyone suffers from some level of depression in their life severe or not. I don't think people with depression are necessarily more intelligent then someone who isn't. If anything one with depression may have more life experience than one without.

[FlyingJesus]

see that's my point, me saying "hey im going to get help for my depression and work really hard on being positive and making positive changes to my life and attitude because i dont want to be depressed anymore" imo makes me intelligent. i didn't become unintelligent by making that choice and if i did then it beats being depressed lol

lmao yes def and I don't wake up on really bad days thinking "hmm let's go solve pi", the whole thing is quite a dangerous theory and romanticising depression doesn't help anyone. It's like a subtler, more adult version of the mid-noughties emo mindset :P

[Stephen]

makes sense yeah but if u think people who have experienced the shitty part of life and know "more", how do u explain people who find happiness after that?
Then I wish them all the best. Happiness is the ++++ of emotion cos that's how we see it

[-:Undertaker:-]

maybe intelligence sort of makes you face the blunt reality of things where as if you're away with the fairies then less worries

[MightyMagician]

maybe intelligence sort of makes you face the blunt reality of things where as if you're away with the fairies then less worries
No trust me, that's just the realization that we live in a depressing world.

[Akeel]

not at all...