However, our views of this condition have changed considerably over time.
When Was Depression Discovered?
When was the first case of depression?
De Agostini / Archivio J. Lange / Getty Images
While depression dates back to thousands of years ago, it was originally referred to by those terms.
The earliest written accounts of what is now known as depression appeared in the second millennium B.C.E.
In these writings, depression was discussed as a spiritual rather than a physical condition.
Like other mental illnesses, it was believed to be sparked by demonic possession.
As such, it was dealt with by priests rather than physicians.
Hippocrates' treatments of choice included bloodletting, baths, exercise, and diet.
He recommended such treatments as baths and a very early form ofbehavior therapywhich involved positive rewards for appropriate behavior.
Exorcisms, drowning, and burning were popular treatments of the time.
Many people were locked up in so-called “lunatic asylums.”
The result of these beliefs was that people with this condition should be shunned or locked up.
And yet others sought to identify the physical causes of this condition.
Around this same time, psychodynamic theory andpsychoanalysisthe jot down of psychotherapy based on this theorywere developed.
Freud further believed that a person’sunconsciousanger over their loss leads to self-hatred and self-destructive behavior.
He felt that psychoanalysis could help a person resolve these unconscious conflicts, reducing self-destructive thoughts and behaviors.
Other doctors during this time, however, saw depression as a brain disorder.
His work introduced the idea thattalk therapycould help relieve symptoms of depression.
Behavioral Explanations
Thebehaviorist movementin psychology contributed to the idea that behaviors are learned through experience.
Just as these depressive behaviors had been learned, they could also be unlearned.
Principles of learning such as association andreinforcementcould be used to establish and strengthen more effective, healthier behaviors.
Cognitive Explanations
During the 1960s and 1970s, cognitive theories of depression began to emerge.
The cognitive theoristAaron Beckproposed that the way that people interpret negative events could contribute to symptoms of depression.
Becksuggested thatnegative automatic thoughts, negative self-beliefs, anderrors in processing informationwere responsible for depressive symptoms.
The psychologistMartin Seligmansuggested thatlearned helplessnesscould play a role in the development of depression.
This lack of control leaves people feeling helpless and hopeless.
Biological explanations for depression focus on factors such as genetics,brain chemistry, hormones, and brain anatomy.
This view played an important role in the development and increased use of antidepressants in the treatment of depression.
The condition officially became part of the DSM-III in 1980.
The diagnosis of depression includesruling out other medical conditionsand other possible causes such as alcohol or substance use.
Frequently Asked Questions
During the 1800s, mental health conditions were still largely viewed as untreatable.
People were often labeled as “mad” or “lunatics” and imprisoned in asylums under harsh conditions.
The earliest accounts of depression viewed the condition as a spiritual rather than a mental problem.
In the middle ages, it was viewed as having supernatural or even demonic causes.
It was not until the 1970s that doctors and researchers emphasized the biological factors that contribute to depression.
Published 2014 Mar 15.
Tipton CM.The history of “exercise is medicine” in ancient civilizations.Adv Physiol Educ.
2016;41(3 Suppl):S75.
Ahonen M.Ancient philosophers on mental illness.Hist Psychiatry.
2019;30(1):3-18. doi:10.1177/0957154X18803508
Tesarova D.Aulus Cornelius Celsus and a regimen.Cas Lek Cesk.
2018;157(5):263-267.
2020;13:21. doi:10.18502/jmehm.v13i21.4863
Dunea G.The anatomy of melancholy.BMJ.
2016;42(6S):S51-S59.
doi:10.1016/S0013-7006(17)30055-6
Kendler KS.Kraepelin’s final views on manic-depressive Illness.J Affect Disord.
2021;282:979-990. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2020.12.200
De Sousa A.Freudian theory and consciousness: A conceptual analysis.Mens Sana Monogr.
2024;16(Suppl 1):S365-S367.
2015;23(1):1-21. doi:10.1037/a0038550
National Institutes of Mental Health.Depression.
