Chronic depression shrinks brain’s memories and emotions

Global study finds the more episodes of depression, the greater the reduction in hippocampus size, but it was very likely damage was reversible

The hippocampus, an area of the brain responsible for memory and emotion, shrinks in people with recurrent and poorly treated depression, a global study has found.

The findings highlighted the importance of treating depression early, particularly in teenagers and young adults, the study concluded.

Fifteen research institutes around the world, including from the US, Europe and Australia, collaborated to combine the results of their existing, smaller studies comparing the hippocampuses of depressed and healthy people.

This allowed them to examine the brain magnetic resonance imaging data of 8,927 people, 1,728 of whom had major depression and the rest of whom were healthy.

The researchers found 65% of the depressed study participants had recurrent depression and it was these people who had a smaller hippocampus, which is near the centre of the brain and is involved with long-term memory, forming new memories, and connecting emotions to those memories.

The findings of the largest international study to compare brain volumes in people with and without major depression were published in the medical journal Molecular Psychiatry.

The University of Sydney’s brain and mind research institute led the Australian arm of the study. Its co-director, Professor Ian Hickie, said those people in the study experiencing their first depressive episode had a normal hippocampus size.

“But the more episodes of depression a person had, the greater the reduction in hippocampus size,” he said.

“So recurrent or persistent depression does more harm to the hippocampus the more you leave it untreated. This largely settles the question of what comes first: the smaller hippocampus or the depression? The damage to the brain comes from recurrent illness.”

More: http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/jun/30/chronic-depression-shrinks-brains-memories-and-emotions

“The researchers found 65% of the depressed study participants had recurrent depression and it was these people who had a smaller hippocampus, which is near the centre of the brain and is involved with long-term memory, forming new memories, and connecting emotions to those memories.”

…

I have long noticed the link between my depression and the mechanisms listed above.

Makes sense

being depressed is a normal part of life, you can’t be happy clappy all the time

in fact it’s the happy clappy ones you have to watch , they are normally mentally unstable. if you had to stake your life on it , the ones that are slightly depressed are the ones you can rely on ( unless you throw alcohol into the mix)

Bubblecar said:

Chronic depression shrinks brain’s memories and emotions

Global study finds the more episodes of depression, the greater the reduction in hippocampus size, but it was very likely damage was reversible

The hippocampus, an area of the brain responsible for memory and emotion, shrinks in people with recurrent and poorly treated depression, a global study has found.

The findings highlighted the importance of treating depression early, particularly in teenagers and young adults, the study concluded.

Fifteen research institutes around the world, including from the US, Europe and Australia, collaborated to combine the results of their existing, smaller studies comparing the hippocampuses of depressed and healthy people.

This allowed them to examine the brain magnetic resonance imaging data of 8,927 people, 1,728 of whom had major depression and the rest of whom were healthy.

The researchers found 65% of the depressed study participants had recurrent depression and it was these people who had a smaller hippocampus, which is near the centre of the brain and is involved with long-term memory, forming new memories, and connecting emotions to those memories.

The findings of the largest international study to compare brain volumes in people with and without major depression were published in the medical journal Molecular Psychiatry.

The University of Sydney’s brain and mind research institute led the Australian arm of the study. Its co-director, Professor Ian Hickie, said those people in the study experiencing their first depressive episode had a normal hippocampus size.

“But the more episodes of depression a person had, the greater the reduction in hippocampus size,” he said.

“So recurrent or persistent depression does more harm to the hippocampus the more you leave it untreated. This largely settles the question of what comes first: the smaller hippocampus or the depression? The damage to the brain comes from recurrent illness.”

More: http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/jun/30/chronic-depression-shrinks-brains-memories-and-emotions

Or does the shrinking cause the depression?

wookiemeister said:

being depressed is a normal part of life, you can’t be happy clappy all the time

in fact it’s the happy clappy ones you have to watch , they are normally mentally unstable. if you had to stake your life on it , the ones that are slightly depressed are the ones you can rely on ( unless you throw alcohol into the mix)

having depression is not about not being ‘happy’ and is not ‘being depressed’

I’ll put this here too

http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/depression-mental-or-physical-illness-unravelling-inflammation-hypothesis

interesting ideas

Arts said:

wookiemeister said:

being depressed is a normal part of life, you can’t be happy clappy all the time

in fact it’s the happy clappy ones you have to watch , they are normally mentally unstable. if you had to stake your life on it , the ones that are slightly depressed are the ones you can rely on ( unless you throw alcohol into the mix)

having depression is not about not being ‘happy’ and is not ‘being depressed’

What she said.

Though I do agree with the wook about the ‘happy clappy’ people….sometimes everything IS shit and there is no fucking bright side to it. So just own it and get over the happy mantra. Sheesh.

thanks…

I’ll go away now.

What’s consider a normal level of happiness if you can define such a thing
How can you tell if you have a depression or are just an unhappy person fed up with your life

kii said:

Arts said:

wookiemeister said:

being depressed is a normal part of life, you can’t be happy clappy all the time

in fact it’s the happy clappy ones you have to watch , they are normally mentally unstable. if you had to stake your life on it , the ones that are slightly depressed are the ones you can rely on ( unless you throw alcohol into the mix)

having depression is not about not being ‘happy’ and is not ‘being depressed’

What she said.

Though I do agree with the wook about the ‘happy clappy’ people….sometimes everything IS shit and there is no fucking bright side to it. So just own it and get over the happy mantra. Sheesh.

thanks…

I’ll go away now.

You don’t have to do that and your point is well made, I agree with you

Cymek said:

What’s consider a normal level of happiness if you can define such a thing
How can you tell if you have a depression or are just an unhappy person fed up with your life

depression is ‘diagnosable’

Cymek said:

What’s consider a normal level of happiness if you can define such a thing
How can you tell if you have a depression or are just an unhappy person fed up with your life

If you don’t get any enjoyment from any activity you are depressed. Hating your job and family doesn’t cut it if you’re still into playing computer games etc.

kii said:

Arts said:

wookiemeister said:

being depressed is a normal part of life, you can’t be happy clappy all the time

in fact it’s the happy clappy ones you have to watch , they are normally mentally unstable. if you had to stake your life on it , the ones that are slightly depressed are the ones you can rely on ( unless you throw alcohol into the mix)

having depression is not about not being ‘happy’ and is not ‘being depressed’

What she said.

Though I do agree with the wook about the ‘happy clappy’ people….sometimes everything IS shit and there is no fucking bright side to it. So just own it and get over the happy mantra. Sheesh.

thanks…

I’ll go away now.

the real psychopaths are the people who don’t stand out at all…. they are just like you and I…

Arts said:

kii said:

Arts said:

having depression is not about not being ‘happy’ and is not ‘being depressed’

What she said.

Though I do agree with the wook about the ‘happy clappy’ people….sometimes everything IS shit and there is no fucking bright side to it. So just own it and get over the happy mantra. Sheesh.

thanks…

I’ll go away now.

the real psychopaths are the people who don’t stand out at all…. they are just like you and I…

but none of that is to do with ‘clinical depression’ it’s all just how individual people handle their lives.

Arts said:

kii said:

Arts said:

having depression is not about not being ‘happy’ and is not ‘being depressed’

What she said.

Though I do agree with the wook about the ‘happy clappy’ people….sometimes everything IS shit and there is no fucking bright side to it. So just own it and get over the happy mantra. Sheesh.

thanks…

I’ll go away now.

the real psychopaths are the people who don’t stand out at all…. they are just like you and I…

Careful who you point the finger at…I’ve been labeled ‘psychotic’ by a former forum person.

kii said:

Arts said:

kii said:

What she said.

Though I do agree with the wook about the ‘happy clappy’ people….sometimes everything IS shit and there is no fucking bright side to it. So just own it and get over the happy mantra. Sheesh.

thanks…

I’ll go away now.

the real psychopaths are the people who don’t stand out at all…. they are just like you and I…

Careful who you point the finger at…I’ve been labeled ‘psychotic’ by a former forum person.

It seems to me a number of people on this forum are probably depressed or a least not having a happy joy joy personality, perhaps because being a deep thinker can make you this way inclined

The elderly woman I work with who broke her hip a few weeks back….she’s the eternal sunshine and happy-birdies-tweeting type of person. A few hours before she fell over she gave me one of her little (and it’s very sweet of her to do this) uplifting thoughts for the day, fluttered her hands and almost chirped as she left the room. Then she fell over, got carted away in an ambulance and had a hip replacement and is in intensive rehab and so on. She’s 73 on Friday and has to work or she does not have enough income.

Yeah, but we had a joke about her uplifting thought of the day when I visited her in hospital :P

kii said:

The elderly woman I work with who broke her hip a few weeks back….she’s the eternal sunshine and happy-birdies-tweeting type of person. A few hours before she fell over she gave me one of her little (and it’s very sweet of her to do this) uplifting thoughts for the day, fluttered her hands and almost chirped as she left the room. Then she fell over, got carted away in an ambulance and had a hip replacement and is in intensive rehab and so on. She’s 73 on Friday and has to work or she does not have enough income.

Yeah, but we had a joke about her uplifting thought of the day when I visited her in hospital :P

What was the uplifting thought?

Cymek said:

kii said:

Arts said:

the real psychopaths are the people who don’t stand out at all…. they are just like you and I…

Careful who you point the finger at…I’ve been labeled ‘psychotic’ by a former forum person.

It seems to me a number of people on this forum are probably depressed or a least not having a happy joy joy personality, perhaps because being a deep thinker can make you this way inclined

Some of us have seen some shit, man..

kii said:

Arts said:

kii said:

What she said.

Though I do agree with the wook about the ‘happy clappy’ people….sometimes everything IS shit and there is no fucking bright side to it. So just own it and get over the happy mantra. Sheesh.

thanks…

I’ll go away now.

the real psychopaths are the people who don’t stand out at all…. they are just like you and I…

Careful who you point the finger at…I’ve been labeled ‘psychotic’ by a former forum person.

I wasn’t pointing any fingers… it’s well known that the most dangerous people are the ones who seem the least dangerous. Psychopaths blend in to society.

Dropbear said:

Cymek said:

kii said:

Careful who you point the finger at…I’ve been labeled ‘psychotic’ by a former forum person.

It seems to me a number of people on this forum are probably depressed or a least not having a happy joy joy personality, perhaps because being a deep thinker can make you this way inclined

Some of us have seen some shit, man..

I’ve… seen things you people wouldn’t believe… Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched c-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate

Some studies even say that we all have psychopathic tendencies.

Arts said:

kii said:

Arts said:

the real psychopaths are the people who don’t stand out at all…. they are just like you and I…

Careful who you point the finger at…I’ve been labeled ‘psychotic’ by a former forum person.

I wasn’t pointing any fingers… it’s well known that the most dangerous people are the ones who seem the least dangerous. Psychopaths blend in to society.

They do tend to find themselves a position above others so as to control.

Arts said:

Some studies even say that we all have psychopathic tendencies.

Yes I’d believe that, given certain circumances they’d manifest themselves

Arts said:

I wasn’t pointing any fingers… it’s well known that the most dangerous people are the ones who seem the least dangerous. Psychopaths blend in to society.

Surely that’s only if you don’t know them. Psychopaths are characterised by psychopathic behaviour, which is usually persistent and quite blatant once you’re familiar with the individual.

Bubblecar said:

kii said:

The elderly woman I work with who broke her hip a few weeks back….she’s the eternal sunshine and happy-birdies-tweeting type of person. A few hours before she fell over she gave me one of her little (and it’s very sweet of her to do this) uplifting thoughts for the day, fluttered her hands and almost chirped as she left the room. Then she fell over, got carted away in an ambulance and had a hip replacement and is in intensive rehab and so on. She’s 73 on Friday and has to work or she does not have enough income.

Yeah, but we had a joke about her uplifting thought of the day when I visited her in hospital :P

What was the uplifting thought?

Oh, sorry. Daisy was distracting me…whining to be let in the back door….I can’t type when she does that.

“Get the juiciness from each day!!!”

Cymek said:

Dropbear said:

Cymek said:

It seems to me a number of people on this forum are probably depressed or a least not having a happy joy joy personality, perhaps because being a deep thinker can make you this way inclined

Some of us have seen some shit, man..

I’ve… seen things you people wouldn’t believe… Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched c-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate

Where do you get your weed man?

kii said:

The elderly woman I work with who broke her hip a few weeks back….she’s the eternal sunshine and happy-birdies-tweeting type of person. A few hours before she fell over she gave me one of her little (and it’s very sweet of her to do this) uplifting thoughts for the day, fluttered her hands and almost chirped as she left the room. Then she fell over, got carted away in an ambulance and had a hip replacement and is in intensive rehab and so on. She’s 73 on Friday and has to work or she does not have enough income.

Yeah, but we had a joke about her uplifting thought of the day when I visited her in hospital :P

Damn.

Can she pay her hospital bills?

Arts said:

I wasn’t pointing any fingers… it’s well known that the most dangerous people are the ones who seem the least dangerous. Psychopaths blend in to society.

Yes, I know. I was joking but…Daisy (see previous post explaining stuff.)

kii said:

Oh, sorry. Daisy was distracting me…whining to be let in the back door….I can’t type when she does that.

“Get the juiciness from each day!!!”

Well that’s suitably cheery.

dv said:

kii said:

The elderly woman I work with who broke her hip a few weeks back….she’s the eternal sunshine and happy-birdies-tweeting type of person. A few hours before she fell over she gave me one of her little (and it’s very sweet of her to do this) uplifting thoughts for the day, fluttered her hands and almost chirped as she left the room. Then she fell over, got carted away in an ambulance and had a hip replacement and is in intensive rehab and so on. She’s 73 on Friday and has to work or she does not have enough income.

Yeah, but we had a joke about her uplifting thought of the day when I visited her in hospital :P

Damn.

Can she pay her hospital bills?

Worker’s comp.

Bubblecar said:

Chronic depression shrinks brain’s memories and emotions

Global study finds the more episodes of depression, the greater the reduction in hippocampus size, but it was very likely damage was reversible

The hippocampus, an area of the brain responsible for memory and emotion, shrinks in people with recurrent and poorly treated depression, a global study has found.

The findings highlighted the importance of treating depression early, particularly in teenagers and young adults, the study concluded.

I can clearly see your nuts

Bubblecar said:

Arts said:

I wasn’t pointing any fingers… it’s well known that the most dangerous people are the ones who seem the least dangerous. Psychopaths blend in to society.

Surely that’s only if you don’t know them. Psychopaths are characterised by psychopathic behaviour, which is usually persistent and quite blatant once you’re familiar with the individual.

Gary Ridgeway (the green River Killer) lived a family life not unlike all other middle class suburban lives, for many yearas… everyone that knew him was beyond shocked, they had no idea.. same with that ‘Killer Clown’ guy, Gacy.. and many others.

maybe if you saw him from ‘afar’ you might see some tendencies, but their ultimate skill to do what they do is to look like they aren’t doing it.

Arts said:

Bubblecar said:

Arts said:

I wasn’t pointing any fingers… it’s well known that the most dangerous people are the ones who seem the least dangerous. Psychopaths blend in to society.

Surely that’s only if you don’t know them. Psychopaths are characterised by psychopathic behaviour, which is usually persistent and quite blatant once you’re familiar with the individual.

Gary Ridgeway (the green River Killer) lived a family life not unlike all other middle class suburban lives, for many yearas… everyone that knew him was beyond shocked, they had no idea.. same with that ‘Killer Clown’ guy, Gacy.. and many others.

maybe if you saw him from ‘afar’ you might see some tendencies, but their ultimate skill to do what they do is to look like they aren’t doing it.

Most get away with it for years

Their also exists a subset of psychopaths who are aware of their darker tendencies and never act on them as they are aware something is wrong with themselves

Arts said:

I’ll put this here too

http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/depression-mental-or-physical-illness-unravelling-inflammation-hypothesis

interesting ideas

Yes, interesting. Thanks.