Form of Depression Is Emerging That Doctors Don't Know How to Treat ... And Its Causes Are Economic

[xchrom]

http://www.alternet.org/economy/scary-new-form-depression-emerging-doctors-dont-know-how-treat-and-its-causes-are-economic



Today I continue to explore the theme that Japan's two decades of economic stagnation may offer guidelines for what lies ahead "for the rest of us" as the global malaise deepens in the years ahead. I have been a student of Japan for 40 years, having studied the language, history, literature, geography and art/film, in university and thereafter. We have many Japanese friends and have visited a number of times. (I have also been a student of the Chinese and Korean cultures.)

Japan is quite different from the U.S. and Europe, with a homogeneous populace and a culture rooted in Confucian values and social hierarchies. Despite the many differences, including definitions of depression, I think it is self-evident that the rising insecurity and workplace changes in Japan result from long-term economic stagnation.

I suspect "new-type depression" may have some universal aspects, as rising insecurity and new demands in the workplace characterize Western economies as well.

New-type depression--NTD--(also called modern-type) is not a classic depression. It does not respond to anti-depressant medications, and it is triggered by events in the workplace--usually criticism from superiors. Those who exhibit the symptoms--difficulty focusing at work, physical symptoms of stress, etc.--tend to be in their 20s and 30s.

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

1. I'm buying...

Just thinking about living in the United States since the 1980s, when I reached adulthood, I've come to believe that I'd be healthier in a culture that is less economically bipolar, i.e., high highs and low lows. Living here definitely has taken a toll on my mental health. Fortunately, I do respond to medications.

[RagAss]

2. The cure is revolution.

[HiPointDem]

3. kr. I'll add that some portion of what is today diagnosed as 'depression' also has economic

roots -- even before the recession.

[Bonobo]

4. K&R. I have been coming to Japan for 26 years...

This is a good article and I can say that there is a lot of truth to it.

Many of the social glues that have held Japan together are becoming frayed.

Inexplicable and unthinkable crimes are on the rise. Fortunately, my little island here is quite safe and insulated from the social diseases that are encroaching in the urban areas.

Things will be MUCH worse in America, in my opinion, where fear and loathing of strangers is so much greater than Japan. Actually, they already are and HAVE been for decades.

20,000 deaths by handgun in the US and largest per capita incarceration rates vs. less than 100 similar deaths in Japan. Those numbers speak volumes.

[xchrom]

5. +1