Depression is a higher state of consciousness

[cicikus]

Reality hurts:
Depression is a higher state of consciousness in which your pleasant illusions are dispelled, leading you to realise your utter irrelevance and worthlessness. Comprehension of this higher truth inevitably leads you to the only acceptable solution. This state is incorrectly perceived by mainstream society as a medical condition, arguably because a depressed person tends to destabilise the pleasant illusions of others.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depressive_realism

Depressive people are less intelligent than non-depressive people because they can't correctly judge themselves and can't realize their true value is higher than they think.

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[mrfox1]

Reality hurts:
Depression is a higher state of consciousness in which your pleasant illusions are dispelled, leading you to realise your utter irrelevance and worthlessness. Comprehension of this higher truth inevitably leads you to the only acceptable solution. This state is incorrectly perceived by mainstream society as a medical condition, arguably because a depressed person tends to destabilise the pleasant illusions of others.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depressive_realism

Depressive people are less intelligent than non-depressive people because they can't correctly judge themselves and can't realize their true value is higher than they think.

not really sure that "less intelligent" is the correct word. I would say they tend to let their depressive thoughts cloud their judgment, which results in poor decision making. But that is independent of intelligence.

what is the purpose of this post anyhow?

 

[BorntoRun]

Refer to the more recent studies described in paragraph 5 of the Wikipedia article you posted. "Depressive realism" is an interesting hypothesis, but hasn't held up well against close empirical scrutiny.

 

[erg923]

Reality hurts:
Depression is a higher state of consciousness in which your pleasant illusions are dispelled, leading you to realise your utter irrelevance and worthlessness. Comprehension of this higher truth inevitably leads you to the only acceptable solution. This state is incorrectly perceived by mainstream society as a medical condition, arguably because a depressed person tends to destabilise the pleasant illusions of others.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depressive_realism

Depressive people are less intelligent than non-depressive people because they can't correctly judge themselves and can't realize their true value is higher than they think.

Are you a cognitive psychologist?

The seems quite intellectualized and mostly ignores the affect component, no?

 

[Rivi]

This is a strange post.

The "depressive realism" theory hasn't held up in any of the studies I have seen about it. Also, you completely ignore the research on happiness.

 

[KillerDiller]

Don't the two paragraphs in the OP contradict each other?

There are many different attributes to depression. Saying it is uniformly a "higher state of consciousness" or saying it only occurs with people of lower intelligence is a vast overgenerailzation. Spend some time with different clinical populations and this will become apparent.

 

[Samoo]

Why did the member who started this thread get banned? Granted s/he was spreading some nonsensical thoughts, but surely the best way for reason to prevail is through public discourse (and research!), yes?

 

[CheetahGirl]

Reality hurts:
Depression is a higher state of consciousness in which your pleasant illusions are dispelled, leading you to realise your utter irrelevance and worthlessness. Comprehension of this higher truth inevitably leads you to the only acceptable solution. This state is incorrectly perceived by mainstream society as a medical condition, arguably because a depressed person tends to destabilise the pleasant illusions of others.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depressive_realism

Depressive people are less intelligent than non-depressive people because they can't correctly judge themselves and can't realize their true value is higher than they think.

Why did the member who started this thread get banned? Granted s/he was spreading some nonsensical thoughts, but surely the best way for reason to prevail is through public discourse (and research!), yes?

Samoo, There may have been another post by this member that we were not privy to...

Personally, I was waiting to see what direction this post would go or if the person asking the OP replied to any of the comments. The OP raises some major questions about the level of training (and/or understanding) that this person may have about depression. Since this is not a clinical forum per se, the statement "Depressive people are less intelligent than non-depressive people because they can't correctly judge themselves and can't realize their true value is higher than they think" seems punitive and derogatory. Changes in intelligence (measured by IQ tests) certainly occur when people are "depressed" but are related to many factors, including cognitive and affectual processing of information. To say it is a higher form of consciousness strikes me as a layperson's perspective who may be a "deep thinker" and somewhat philosophical, but raises my primary question: What is the purpose of this post?

Many things can be viewed as 'inspiring' a higher state of consciousness, like synthetic drugs, in one case. This deeper awareness, sometimes somatic, can be affected by many factors, including depressive affect and even trauma.

In my opinion this post didn't go farther because as nonsensical as the OP may seem (due to the large number of fallacies), this forum may not be the place to discuss theoretical angles on depression. That should be saved for research groups and college classes where one can get more tailored guidance and the discussions can meet each individual at the level of thinking that he/she is developmentally. Psychoeducation about depression should be discussed in one's personal therapy (as it relates to each individual) or on other forums rather than this forum geared at doctors-in-training. There are LOTS of forums on depression and many people willing to engage in philosophical arguments about it.

Again, just my opinion (and everyone has one).