Comments on Depressed?

Thanks, Tom.

No wonder when I'm super lazy, I feel super stupid!

I think all new government leaders would help.

That's it. I'm turning off the Xbox 10 minutes early to walk up the hill to pick up the kids from summer school.

Thank you, LiveScience, for finally saying it, as if I haven't been telling people this to no avail for the last 5 years.

Another thing... obesity epidemic... rising number of depression cases... coincidence? Methinks not.

Hey wait a minute. I cope with crippling depression, am in decent shape and extremely active ... but then I'm a grad student in chemistry. I guess I really can't comment.

Why does it take a researcher to tell us exercise will relieve depression??? I think it is common sense.

@6: Matt, you gotta switch into liberal arts, man. We live the sweet, if slightly deluded life of drunken faux-philosophers. Problem sets? What problem sets!

I mean, we'll all be lined up for our degrees and complimentary cardboard boxes in another year or so, but...

Matt, how do we know you're not self-inducing your depression, or that it doesn't have some sort of legitimate cause, i.e. a loved one died?

Not exactly the same thing as people who are depressed for no real useful reason.

You could also be making that up just to be disagreeable (I noticed you were extremely vague), but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for now.

Come on people, you know it's not that simple.

Yes, if you're feeling a little down, getting active will cheer you up. But no, if you have severe chronic depression, going to the gym every day will not make any difference.

I shouldn't have to write this, but there are still plenty of Puritans in the world who blame the sick person for getting the disease.

I guess I commented because ... well ... I guess one of my friends was giving me a bit of crap for seeing a psychiatrist. It has been helping a lot. And yes I'm tall and athletic. I would supposedly have no reason to be depressed, except maybe life really did tweak me for no reason. Maybe I do suffer from mental illness (it does run in my family) Or whatever. I guess I think these things are rather vague in principle. There are other studies that suggest that exercise works just as well as pscyhopharmacological drugs. Maybe I could have been worse if I didn't follow in tow with the rest of the grad students and let my body go to shit. Exercise or no exercise, I do need it, I've become quite the endorphin junky ... and I'll admit it's better than alcoholism which seems to be the normal coping mechanism.

I observed years ago that working out regularly makes me do much better in school, and just all around feel better, healthier and more energetic.

I'm not depressed, but that article just tipped the scales - I'm going surfing tomorrow morning, and I'm doing it guilt free.

Finally! There's something to counteract the effect of all the weed I've been smoking. Now all I have to do is.... wait.... what were we talking about?

This must be why W is so conscientious about getting his exercise - to augment
his awesome brain ...

Yes, excersize is a good treatment for depression, but a)it's only sucessful when it's just one part of a comprehensive pland and b) do I really have to remind people that when you're depressed it's really, really, REALLY difficult to get moving? That's what "depression" is.

I believe in personal responsibility and initiative, but I get really sick of these "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" idiots who think that all mental illnesses can be cured by a little fresh air and a change of attitude.

I love Dan, but he's really insensitive when it comes to mental illness. Actually, he's probably just uninformed, like most people. Easy for me to say as a sufferer and former mental health practictioner, but I really wish people would make a better effort to understand.