Having a deep interest in human flourishing as I do, means that I'm also interested in what takes us off track - in non-flourishing. Depression is an important example.
I was recently listening to a podcast from Andrew Huberman* who gives fabulous summaries of the current state of scientific knowledge on various topics. This one was on depression and one of the key take-aways for me was the strong link between high stress and the number of bouts of major depression you are likely to have.
Specifically, if you have 4-5 very stressful episodes, your risk of depression goes up.
There is also a genetic predisposition for depression - a gene that shifts your susceptibility to depression with stress. If you have this gene, you need fewer episodes of stress to fall into depression.
Whether you have the predisposition or not though, the key message was the importance of learning to manage stress as a means of inoculating ourselves against depression.
There are many behavioural and psychological tactics for responding to and coping with stress which are easy enough to find with a bit of Googling around. Less stress and greater calm are also symptoms of serious personal growth - the stuff I talk about with you.
But here are the (mostly physical) tactics he shared, some of which I didn't know affected depression or in some cases its precursor - stress.
beware of highs - don't overwhelm the pleasure centre because dopamine has the effect of making us want more and can leave us feeling low if we don't get it. (I'll explore this topic more next week.)
regular exercise - and other things that increase noradrenaline (e.g. cold showers...I'll take the exercise thanks!) Exercise has both protective and recuperative effects.
essential fatty acids and fermented foods - chronic stress causes inflammation and too much can lead to depression. Essential Fatty acids (Omega 3s - 1000-2000mg of EPAs/day) and fermented foods can relieve the inflammatory symptoms. (Omega 3s also improve cardiovascular health and reduce symptoms of major depression.)
creatine supplements - improves mood and decreases symptoms of depression (note: it also seems to increase mania in those who are manic).
carbohydrates - they blunt cortisol, one of the key stress hormones
for those who don't respond to common drugs for depression, the ketogenic diet (a low inflammation diet) can be helpful. (Interestingly it can also be used in helping treat epilepsy.)
When we're deeply interested in the psychological aspects of flourishing, it's easy to forget that we are also very much physical beings. I recall the research on judges sentencing criminals which found that sentences given just before lunch were harsher. That is, when the judges were hangry, they gave more severe sentences!
Most of the perspective I share with you through these posts is about the psychological aspects of flourishing. But don't forget we are also a pile of hormones and neurotransmitters and all sorts of complex and fascinating physical elements.
If we want to flourish fully, we need to take care with both.
*This podcast is from 2021.
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