Compelling Research Discovers A Potential Cause of Depression Symptoms

Research Finds Possible New Direction for Treatment of Depression

Compelling new research has discovered a previously unknown cause of depression, opening way for new potential new treatment pathways. The significance of this enormous as over half of all people who have major depression are not able to find relief from antidepressants. 

There is no single known cause of depression but we do know that it takes more than one biological change to trigger an episode.

Inflammation in the brain seems to be one of these changes, with new research finding a compelling link between brain inflammation and major depression.

Brain scans were compared between people with clinical depression and those without. The scans revealed that brain inflammation in people with depression was 30% more than those without. The inflammation was highest in those people who were experiencing the most severe depression.

Inflammation in the brain serves a similar protective function as it does in the rest of the body, but too much can be damaging.

Evidence is increasingly pointing to the role of inflammation in generating the symptoms of major depression such as low mood and appetite and sleep disturbances. The role of brain inflammation on clinical depression seems to be independent of any other physical illness.

The findings have significant implications for the development of new treatments. Lead researcher Dr Jeffrey Meyer explains, ‘It provides a potential new target to either reverse the brain inflammation or shift to a more positive repair role, with the idea that it would alleviate symptoms.’

Our knowledge of depression and its possible causes is expanding all the time, opening new paths and possibilities for effective treatments.

Like so many illnesses, depression draws a circle around one person and draws those who are close to that person in. See here for what to do when someone you care about has depression.

4 Comments

Wanda

I have thoroughly enjoyed your articles on depression and anxiety in children. Is this anxiety in children more prevalent in boys or girls or the same? Thank you so much for your insight.

Reply
heysigmund

I’m so pleased you’ve enjoyed the articles. Now about the prevalence in boys and girls, it depends on what sort of anxiety. Social anxiety and separation anxiety are more common in girls. Girls are also twice as likely as boys to have panic attacks. Girls are also more likely to develop generalised anxiety disorder – about 2 in 3 are girls. Obsessive compulsive disorder are about equal. Hope this helps.

Reply
Clara McBride

It seems inflammation is being connected to so many of our health problems. Will the same dietary changes recommended for inflammation in other parts of our body help reduce inflammation in our brains as well?

Reply
heysigmund

This such a good question. This research is in its very early days and researchers are still exploring the implications. There are many connections being made between diet and mental health. I’ll certainly be following the research and posting about it. Thank you for making contact with me.

Reply

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We can’t fix a problem (felt disconnection) by replicating the problem (removing affection, time-out, ignoring them).

All young people at some point will feel the distance between them and their loved adult. This isn’t bad parenting. It’s life. Life gets in the way sometimes - work stress, busy-ness, other kiddos.

We can’t be everything to everybody all the time, and we don’t need to be.

Kids don’t always need our full attention. Mostly, they’ll be able to hold the idea of us and feel our connection across time and space.

Sometimes though, their tanks will feel a little empty. They’ll feel the ‘missing’ of us. This will happen in all our relationships from time to time.

Like any of us humans, our kids and teens won’t always move to restore that felt connection to us in polished or lovely ways. They won’t always have the skills or resources to do this. (Same for us as adults - we’ve all been there.)

Instead, in a desperate, urgent attempt to restore balance to the attachment system, the brain will often slide into survival mode. 

This allows the brain to act urgently (‘See me! Be with me!) but not always rationally (‘I’m missing you. I’m feeling unseen, unnoticed, unchosen. I know this doesn’t make sense because you’re right there, and I know you love me, but it’s just how I feel. Can you help me?’

If we don’t notice them enough when they’re unnoticeable, they’ll make themselves noticeable. For children, to be truly unseen is unsafe. But being seen and feeling seen are different. Just because you see them, doesn’t mean they’ll feel it.

The brain’s survival mode allows your young person to be seen, but not necessarily in a way that makes it easy for us to give them what they need.

The fix?

- First, recognise that behaviour isn’t about a bad child. It’s a child who is feeling disconnected. One of their most important safety systems - the attachment system - is struggling. Their behaviour is an unskilled, under-resourced attempt to restore it.

- Embrace them, lean in to them - reject the behaviour.

- Keep their system fuelled with micro-connections - notice them when they’re unnoticeable, play, touch, express joy when you’re with them, share laughter.♥️
Everything comes back to how safe we feel - everything: how we feel and behave, whether we can connect, learn, play - or not. It all comes back to felt safety.

The foundation of felt safety for kids and teens is connection with their important adults.

Actually, connection with our important people is the foundation of felt safety for all of us.

All kids will struggle with feeling a little disconnected at times. All of us adults do too. Why? Because our world gets busy sometimes, and ‘busy’ and ‘connected’ are often incompatible.

In trying to provide the very best we can for them, sometimes ‘busy’ takes over. This will happen in even the most loving families.

This is when you might see kiddos withdraw a little, or get bigger with their behaviour, maybe more defiant, bigger feelings. This is a really normal (though maybe very messy!) attempt to restore felt safety through connection.

We all do this in our relationships. We’re more likely to have little scrappy arguments with our partners, friends, loved adults when we’re feeling disconnected from them.

This isn’t about wilful attempt, but an instinctive, primal attempt to restore felt safety through visibility. Because for any human, (any mammal really), to feel unseen is to feel unsafe.

Here’s the fix. Notice them when they are unnoticeable. If you don’t have time for longer check-ins or conversations or play, that’s okay - dose them up with lots of micro-moments of connection.

Micro-moments matter. Repetition matters - of loving incidental comments, touch, laughter. It all matters. They might not act like it does in the moment - but it does. It really does.

And when you can, something else to add in is putting word to the things you do for them that might go unnoticed - but doing this in a joyful way - not in a ‘look at what I do for you’ way.

‘Guess what I’m making for dinner tonight because I know how much you love it … pizza!’

‘I missed you today. Here you go - I brought these car snacks for you. I know how much you love these.’

‘I feel like I haven’t had enough time with you today. I can’t wait to sit down and have dinner with you.’ ❤️

#parenting #gentleparenting #parent #parentingwithrespect
It is this way for all of us, and none of this is about perfection. 

Sometimes there will be disconnect, collisions, discomfort. Sometimes we won’t be completely emotionally available. 

What’s important is that they feel they can connect with us enough. 

If we can’t move to the connection they want in the moment, name the missing or the disconnect to help them feel less alone in it:

- ‘I missed you today.’ 
- ‘This is a busy week isn’t it. I wish I could have more time with you. Let’s go to the park or watch a movie together on Sunday.’
- ‘I know you’re annoyed with me right now. I’m right here when you’re ready to talk. Take your time. I’m not going anywhere.’
- ‘I can see you need space. I’ll check in on you in a few minutes.’

Remember that micro-connections matter - the incidental chats, noticing them when they are unnoticeable, the smiles, the hugs, the shared moments of joy. They all matter, not just for your little people but for your big ones too.♥️

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