“For example, for decades, in the official bible for mental disorder diagnosis, the DSM, depression within two months after a death was usually not termed “depression.” Instead, depression following a death was considered under another category, called “simple bereavement,” which was not indicative of a mental disorder or condition. In fact, of all the things that can befall a person, bereavement has historically been the only life event that could potentially negate a diagnosis of depression. Bereavement-related depressions last for about as long as regular depressions do. People who have a bereavement-related depression are about as likely as those who have a regular depression to have additional episodes of depression in the future. Bad life events come in great variety and have many themes: uncertainty, danger, humiliation, injustice, and so forth. However, when people’s reported life events are rated on different themes by objective coders, the theme that most consistently predicts depression is loss. You can lose your livelihood, reputation, or marriage. But the ultimate loss, bereavement, is the prototypical loss event, the one that most strongly predicts depression.” LossDepressionBereavement Book:The Depths: The Evolutionary Origins of the Depression Epidemic Source: The Depths: The Evolutionary Origins of the Depression Epidemic
“Take a young adult’s depression that emerges after he starts working at an ordinary job after college; the depression might be related to the fact that taking a less-than-ideal job meant giving up on a childhood career dream, even if the loss of the dream was not discussed explicitly and the young adult is only dimly aware of the connection between the loss and the symptoms. : John Grace, a psychiatrist practicing in Florida, said, “I have had a number of patients I’ve done CBT [cognitive behavioral therapy] for months on and finally after spinning my head in circles I realize I have been missing a tremendous loss for them.” LossDepression Book:The Depths: The Evolutionary Origins of the Depression Epidemic Source: The Depths: The Evolutionary Origins of the Depression Epidemic