Further Evidence That Depression May Be Over Pathologized and a Mechanism for Growth

The field of psychologist has be quick to pathologize depression as a chronic mental illness. Researchers are now beginning to explore the possibility that depression is often a precursor for growth and transformation, as summarized in this article.

“A significant subset of people recover and thrive after depression, yet research on such individuals has been rare,” they write in their recent paper in Perspectives on Psychological Science. They propose a definition for “high functioning after depression” (HFAD); argue that the advice given to people with depression need not be so gloomy; and lay out key areas for future research.