Has anybody seen Boner? UPDATE: RIP

Understood. And a very good point about this in particular:

"Obviously someone who spends that much time just ... thinking likely is forced to go down some pretty dark paths."

 

Terrible, terrible situation. I have friend from 1L who I have similar worries about. He was number one in the class, best paper in 7 classes our first year, and was never happy. He transferred to a bigger school and every time I talk to him he still seems miserable despite all his talents. I have suffered mild depression from time to time but never quite like this guy. I sincerely feel that one day when he gets in a really bad funk he will end up offing himself.

After years of it sitting on my shelf untouched, I recently read Learned Optimism by Martin Seligman, a PhD in Psych, and it really helped quantify my depression and provided different strategies and ways to look at the world which have been helpful. I sent a copy to my friend (who hadn't read it last time I spoke to him) and other friends who I recognized as often being depressed. I would recommend it for anyone here who thinks they might be depressed, too.

 

There's a pretty strong correlation between depression and intelligence. And what can make it worse is parents, etc., often think, "Oh, s/he is so smart, s/he can figure things out," when often it's the exact opposite.

 

Correct. And it's the fact that intelligent people can't always understand it which compounds the frustration, which doesn't help those battling depression.

 

One of the scariest articles I read in a long time was in Time or Newsweek and the gist of it was that anti-depressants don't work nearly as well as advertised.

In this day and age of depression running rampant, that is scary to think about,.

 

A drug, a synthetic solution, made essentially with somebody's high-end chemistry set not working.

Well hire a camel to blow my fucking balls off, I ... am ... shocked.

 

Here's the Newsweek article:

http://www.newsweek.com/id/232781

 

New Yorker has a review this week of a couple of books that make the same argument.