Originally Posted by
Nick-
Despite the fact that I study Psychology :rolleyes:
True clinical depression is exactly that, in some cases to the point of suicide. If you want I can delve into the causes of depression in humans, biologically it's essentially down to the suppression of the serotonin release system controlled by the hypothalamus, drugs are often used to bring the serotonin levels back to an acceptable level. Some patients choose ECT over drugs despite the negative image it's generated over the years from the media, usually this is used in cases that are an immediate danger to themselves or those around them as it provides relief from symptoms within an hour provided the immediate consequential after effects of disorientation, STM loss and mild confusion subside. Alternatively, in the more extreme and desperate cases of depression a pre frontal lobotomy is the only solution which involves the literal severing of links to or partial removal of parts of the pre frontal lobe. Lobotomies of any kind are permanent and only to be prescribed as a last resort solution as the consequences of failure are dire e.g. loss of other emotions, loss of certain motor controls or death. Lobotomy patients are also likely to never experience dreaming again as EEG scans have proven that this portion of the brain is highly active during REM sleep and NREM sleep to a lesser extent although the link between the pre frontal lobe and dreaming is yet unproven scientifically it has been reported that lobotomy patients experience a loss of dreams therefore it can be concluded that the pre frontal lobe plays a crucial role in the creation of dreams, although this role is currently undefined.
The socio biological explanations of depression are slightly long winded to be posted here although it's based on the idea that depression occurs as a result of a demotion in social status and I'm not the biggest fan of Freud's theories of psychological illnesses, I find them slightly tenuous and comparable to a loosely held together climbing frame that has a few screws missing plus I would need to explain the 3 areas of the psyche, they're development during the stages of psycho-sexual development and, to a certain extent, the Oedipus complex which is rather time consuming.
If you want to enlighten me on what depression is feel free to. While you're at it explain Sherman's EOBD hypothesis as well, whilst on the topic of depression we may as well attempt to explain the ultimate causation of BD rather than focusing on a proximate causation, perhaps you know something about the evolution of human intelligence too? Does the Machiavellian theory of human intelligence ring any bells? Perhaps you would like to share your opinions on the different theories of dreaming, personally I'm a firm believer in the activation-synthesis hypothesis, some of the more imaginative psychologists beg to differ and prefer to hold the more psychodynamic based theories (Jung's problem solving theory or Freud's 'psychic safety valve' theory) in higher regard although these are often criticised as entirely subjective and unfalsifiable which technically also makes them unscientific too. Then again there's always the reverse learning theory which is a relatively recent theory, although it's disproved to a certain extent due to the counterargument that anteater's don't actually dream therefore according to the reverse learning theory they should all be unable to function mentally simply because the brain can't hold enough information for long enough to ensure survival. Or you could inform me more about the socio biological theory behind PPD, another unique form of depression that often results in infanticide in the animal kingdom or maybe you've got some informed opinions on the whole brain size vs brain density in relation to intelligence debate that you'd like to share, if my opinion was asked for I would probably raise the argument that it isn't the size or surface area of the brain that defines intelligence (as proven by the case of the Blue Whale, if the largest brain = highest intelligence, why aren't blue whales at the top of the food chain?) but that intelligence is defined either by the number of neurons available within the cortex or by the number of layers in the cortex which has scientific support as primates have 6 cortical layers whereas cetaceans have only 5 and it's clear that primates are more intelligent than cetaceans, humans also have 6 which also provides an evolutionary link between us and the primates (although let's not bring that up near any creationists. ;))
If you want we can go back to the basic psychological theories ignoring the socio biological theory of human behaviour and focusing on the core 4 theories, assuming you know what these are...
How dare you say that I have not researched depression.