Category: Depression

The Ways Depression Changes People’s Personality

Study tests if depression changes people’s personality.

Study tests if depression changes people’s personality.

People who are depressed become more neurotic, more dependent on others and more thoughtful in the short-term, research finds.

After recovering from depression, though, people’s personality returns almost completely to its pre-depression state.

Depression does not change people’s personality in the long-term, the study found.

Indeed, people’s personality may become slightly more healthy after recovering from an episode of depression.

However, depression does affect people’s personality somewhat while they are experiencing an episode.

There was some evidence, though, that people lose some of their social confidence after an episode of depression.

It may also be that multiple, severe bouts of depression can have a long-lasting effect on personality.

The conclusions come from thousands of people, some with and some without depression, who were followed across six years.

The study’s authors explain the results:

“None of the scales for which negative change would be
predicted by the scar hypothesis (increased neuroticism, emotional reliance, and lack of social self-confidence; decreased ascendance/dominance, sociability, and extroversion) showed such change.

In general, scores on these scales remained stable from time 1 to time 2; if they changed at all, they changed numerically in the direction of healthier scores at time 2.”

The results showed no evidence of the so-called ‘scar hypothesis’.

The authors explain that…

“…the “scar” or “complication” model, suggesting that the depressive episode is the cause of lasting change in personality.”

Instead, the study supports the idea that certain personality types are vulnerable to depression.

Negative emotionality is the strongest risk factor for depression among personality traits, research finds.

Negative emotionality is essentially being highly neurotic and involves finding it hard to deal with stress and experiencing a lot of negative emotions and mood swings.

People who are neurotic are more likely to experience negative emotions like fear, jealousy, guilt, worry and envy.

The study was published in The American Journal of Psychiatry (Shea et al., 1996).

Depression Is Contagious Between These Family Members (S)

One-quarter of parents reported moderate to severe depression.

One-quarter of parents reported moderate to severe depression.

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The Neural Link Between Depression And Sleep Identified (S)

Why 75% of depressed people also report sleep problems like insomnia or difficulties falling asleep.

Why 75% of depressed people also report sleep problems like insomnia or difficulties falling asleep.

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The Drugs That May Treat Depression By Restructuring The Brain (S)

The findings could help with new treatments for depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and addictions.

The findings could help with new treatments for depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and addictions.

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This 3-Minute Treatment For Major Depression Is Effective, Research Finds

Almost half the people in the study found their symptoms reduced and 32% had complete remission.

Almost half the people in the study found their symptoms reduced and 32% had complete remission.

Major depression can be effectively treated in just three minutes at a time with brain stimulation, new research shows.

Treatment-resistant depression does not respond to antidepressants.

Up to around 40% of people may have this type of depression.

However, studies have shown a type of brain stimulation called repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can be helpful.

Previously, these sessions took 37.5 minutes each, but new research suggests just three minutes of a different type of brain stimulation can be just as effective.

Intermittent theta burst stimulation, or iTBS, mimics the natural electrical rhythms in the brain.

Dr Daniel Blumberger, the study’s lead author, said:

“The main impact of this study is that the number of people who are able to be treated using theta burst stimulation compared to the standard form of rTMS can be increased by three to four fold.”

For the study, people with treatment-resistant depression were either given the longer or the shorter treatment for five days a week over six weeks.

The results showed that almost half the people in the study found that iTBS reduced their symptoms and 32% had complete remission.

The figures for rTMS were similar, but the iTBS is quicker.

One of the patients, Shelley Hofer, 43, who has had treatment-resistant depression for most of her life, said:

“rTMS has changed my life in so many ways.

I really wish it had been around a long time ago because I believe it would have been my go-to treatment.

In my personal opinion, I feel rTMS could improve the lives of so many people who are still struggling to find the answers to their own mental illness.”

The study was published in the journal The Lancet (Blumberger et al., 2018).

The Diet That Reduces Depression Risk

People eating this diet felt more positive and were more likely to be flourishing.

People eating this diet felt more positive and were more likely to be flourishing.

Eating raw fruits and vegetables is linked to better mental health, new research finds.

People eating raw fruit and veg were at lower risk of depression and more likely to be flourishing and feeling positive about life.

Raw bananas and apples were particularly beneficial, along with ‘salad fixings’.

Just over 6 servings of raw fruit and vegetables provided the maximum benefit to mental health.

Cooked, canned or processed fruits and vegetables were not linked to the same boost.

Dr Tamlin Conner, who led the research, said:

“Our research has highlighted that the consumption of fruit and vegetables in their ‘unmodified’ state is more strongly associated with better mental health compared to cooked/canned/processed fruit and vegetables.”

The ten best foods for mental health were:

  1. carrots,
  2. bananas,
  3. apples,
  4. dark leafy greens such as spinach,
  5. grapefruit,
  6. lettuce,
  7. citrus fruits,
  8. fresh berries,
  9. cucumber,
  10. and kiwifruit.

The study surveyed over 400 people in the US and New Zealand about their dietary habits and mental health.

Young people aged 18 to 25 were chosen for the study as this age range is typically at highest risk for mental health problems.

Dr Connor explained the results:

“Controlling for the covariates, raw fruit and vegetable consumption predicted lower levels of mental illness symptomology, such as depression, and improved levels of psychological wellbeing including positive mood, life satisfaction and flourishing.

These mental health benefits were significantly reduced for cooked, canned, and processed fruits and vegetables.

This research is increasingly vital as lifestyle approaches such as dietary change may provide an accessible, safe, and adjuvant approach to improving mental health.”

The study was published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology (Brookie et al., 2018).

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