Mental Depression—“The Power of the Disease”
A MAN suffering from depression visited a doctor for help. The story goes that after a careful examination the doctor said: “You need amusement; go and hear the comedian Grimaldi; he will make you laugh, and that will be better for you than any drugs.” Looking even more dejected, the man replied, “I am Grimaldi!”
Yes, no one is immune to depression! And anyone who has suffered from it knows that it is no laughing matter. We all go through periods when we feel emotionally low, perhaps because of grief, disappointment or fatigue. But usually in a short time we bounce back. However, at times the depression lingers. It may even become destructive.
For instance, Irene battled for three years with this disorder said to cause “more suffering than any other disease.” In a moment of total hopelessness she killed her children and then herself. In trying to explain what happened to this previously devoted mother, at her funeral a rabbi said: “It was the illness which overwhelmed her and her life.” He then asked a bone-chilling question: “Who can comprehend the power of the disease?”
What she suffered was major depression—an unrelenting, destructive mood that also produces physical symptoms. Dr. Leonard Cammer reports:
“Depression can strike anyone—a housewife, cabdriver, businessman, schoolteacher, gambler, actress, bricklayer, saleswoman . . . and so on. And it appears in stable and mature persons, neurotics, and children. Moreover, it can occur at any level of the economic, social or intellectual scale, and in every kind of personality.”—“Up from Depression.”
Could it affect you or your loved ones? Estimates are that each year one out of 10 people will experience a clinically depressed mood. During today’s “critical times hard to deal with,” a World Health Organization survey found 200 million persons worldwide suffering from the “disease.”—2 Tim. 3:1.
Though the vast majority of sufferers never go as far as Irene, many agree with one previous sufferer who explains how she felt before she found relief: “Nothing was enjoyable. I felt trapped in a terrible nightmare with no hope of change. I felt as if I was hanging on for dear life every minute of every day. I didn’t want to die, but I didn’t want to live under these conditions either.”
What causes such suffering? Is it just in the mind?