Hello Reader,

After I recovered from depression, I wanted to understand the causes. This was the second time that I had a run-in with depression, but the reasons behind this episode were very different from the first.

So I wanted to figure it out.

What is the true cause of depression? Is there even one?

And I’ve written about this many times before, but it’s worth saying again:

But what was always clear to me was that it had very little to do with your biology or your brain being broken or defective in some way.

You are not broken.

Your brain chemistry is not inherently defective.

Being depressed, anxious, or chronically stressed is not your fault.

After reflecting on what I had gone through, I concluded that stress, anxiety, and even depression are natural reactions to an environment that doesn’t support your mental (and physical) well-being.

Yes, they are “normal” reactions to an abnormal human environment. And I say “normal”, meaning that it’s logical that you react this way, not that it’s normal to feel depressed.

It sure doesn’t feel natural to be depressed or constantly anxious; it doesn’t feel good at all.

But it’s natural that it happens.

The "true nature" of depression

Often the best way to understand what’s natural is to look at animals.

We can very easily understand what a natural environment is for a bird or for a whale.

So in veterinary science, there is a well-documented phenomenon known as "zoochosis." It means that when a wild animal is placed in a small, artificial cage (stripped of its natural habitat, pack, and stimulation), it begins to exhibit severe depression-like symptoms.

If this is true for animals, why not humans? We are a part of the animal kingdom after all.

If you put a wild orca in a small concrete pool, its dorsal fin collapses, it stops swimming, and it sinks to the bottom of the tank in total apathy.

When we see that orca, we don't look at it and say, “Wow, that whale is broken. It must have a chemical imbalance in its brain.”

We don't blame the orca. We instantly recognize that the whale is trapped in an environment that is actively destroying its spirit.

Yet, when we get trapped in a hyper-isolated, high-stress, deeply unnatural modern environment, society tells us that we are the ones who are broken.

We are taught to blame our biology instead of looking at the tank we’ve been forced to swim in.

Of course, some people have noticed this.

What the experts say

A while ago, I came across the work of Dr. Gabor Maté. I’ve known about him but haven’t really dug into his work. And I was surprised to find that Dr. Maté has found through research what I concluded based on my own experience.

It just so happens that Dr. Maté, a leading expert on trauma, explains that depression is often your subconscious way of "pressing down” overwhelming emotions and stress just to survive a (mentally) toxic environment (“pressing down” is a term I use too, before knowing that Maté used it as well; it is the translated meaning of Latin words meaning depression)

Depression is a natural reaction to an unnatural way of living.

This, then, reminded me of Johann Hari, whose research shows that depression can be thought of as a disease of disconnection. Disconnection from meaningful work, community, nature, and a secure future.

We’re “cut off” from our humanness, like an animal in a zoo cut off from its natural habitat, tendencies, and pack. We are forced to live in a way that does not support our in-built needs and desires.

Depression does not mean you are defective or broken.

It means you are a human being whose fundamental biological and psychological needs are not being met by the modern world.

As Dr. Gabor Maté says: Depression is a sane reaction to an insane environment.

So what can you do?

If the environment we live in causes us to feel depressed, what can we actually do to heal it?

That's a valid question.

Why bother with all the self-help in the world if depression is really society’s fault and it’s the world that should change to make us feel better?

My answer is:

Yes, the world should change. The ultimate "cure" would be a complete overhaul of how we live, work, and connect as a society.

But can you afford to wait for it?

You want relief now.

You deserve your life back today.

Human beings are more complex than animals, and the world is certainly bigger than a zoo enclosure. That makes each of our lives highly unique and personal.

And because our life stories, traumas, and environments are unique to us, healing from this is also a highly personal journey. No one can hand you a 100% foolproof, step-by-step guide to beating depression.

Still, the uniqueness of your life is actually a good thing.

Even though it means you are the one who has to figure it out, it also means that YOU are the one who’s in control.

And while your depression is a condition unique to you, it doesn’t mean you have to go about your healing journey alone.

I like to think of it this way: right now, you are lost in a massive animal enclosure in a zoo, with dense vegetation making it impossible to see a way out.

But suddenly, you hear a voice calling from the distance: “Hey! Over here! Come this way!”

You still can’t see a clearing, a path, let alone the fence around the enclosure. But suddenly, you have a direction.

My story and the stories of others, the insights of experts, and the tools I’m sharing on my website are not a map, but they are breadcrumbs leading you out of the enclosure.

They are proof that someone else was trapped in these exact same enclosures, found the edge, climbed out, and is now shouting back to show you which way to walk.

You still have to carve out your own unique path, but you no longer have to wander aimlessly in the dark.

How to take control of your life

So, what do we do when we cannot immediately change the world around us?

We change how we respond to it.

​We shift our internal world, and our reaction to the external world changes along with it.

Blaming a broken society might be accurate, but it leaves you powerless. It keeps you in the passenger seat of your own suffering.

Your healing begins the moment you accept a tough, beautiful paradox: It is not your fault that you are down here, but it is in your power to climb out.

Until next time,

Think happy thoughts!

​- Atte

P.S. This is pure coincidence (although I do not really believe in coincidences), but a year ago I wrote about the same question in my journal while being depressed. This journal entry introduces another contributing factor to depression, it might be well worth checking out.

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