Victoria Noe

Award-winning Author, Speaker, Activist

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Of Course I’m Depressed: My Best Friend Died

Of Course I’m Depressed: My Best Friend Died
Mar 26, 2012 by Victoria Noe
illustrationsof.comFor the past few weeks, the world has weighed in on a debate that could potentially affect us all.The American Psychiatric Association’s DSM-5 – the Bible of psychiatric disorders – could include grief as a form of severe depression.There is little debate that elements of grief are consistent with mild depression: mood swings, inability to sleep or enjoy normal activities. It can be difficult for seasoned professionals to differentiate between the two.A diagnosis of clinical depression is not something to be taken lightly. And normal grief can spiral into clinical depression. There are already protocols in place to deal with severe depression.But turning normal grief into something that requires therapy and/or medication after two weeks…well, to me that’s going too...