"Breakdowns are good for you" said the text glaring from the website of Malcolm Bowden, the same evangelical Christian who just a few hours earlier had been on Channel 4's 4thought promoting his ideas about the root causes and cures for clinical depression (transcript available here). Bowden claims that depression and many other mental illnesses are "very deliberately decided" by the person suffering from them and that the former is a "behavioural problem, rooted in pride, self-centredness, and self-pity". The proposed solution? To submit ourselves to the Christian God in total humility, and to find peace with this deity through living our lives for others.

The irony is that many common thought processes associated with depression actually fulfil most of these criteria: the lack of self-esteem or belief in talents are examples of taking humility to extremes, and the near constant concern about what others are thinking can drive us to live our lives according to the will of other people. Advocating these as cures is highly questionable when they are both key symptoms of the illness, each likely to be as much use as trying to extinguish a fire by throwing a box of matches on to the flames.

Arrogance and a need to impress through perfection are not the root causes of the despair of depression, but are instead often generated by a fear of being judged and failing to achieve a sense of normality. Demonising people with depression for failing to satisfy the paradox of shunning perfection while falling short of the divine ideals demanded by Bowden is a hallmark of someone who is setting others up for failure – both aims are impossible to achieve simultaneously and yet both are expected of a patient. The resultant failure is then used to support the idea that the illness is a mark of personal weakness rather than something that often requires extensive medical treatment.

Double standards are not uncommon in our culture. Many magazines are filled with celebrity gossip, where any sign of imperfection is seized upon without mercy. This form of public humiliation has been around for years, but it clashes with the idea of people accepting themselves as they are. It's hardly surprising that people can develop negative thought processes when this type of hypocrisy remains at large. Health news stories also have an impact on depression and the stigma which continues to surround it. Two common narratives within these articles are the story of the miracle cure and grave warnings about everyday habits that may pose a risk to people's health, each of which can contribute towards one of two ideas: that long-term illness happens to people who either can't be bothered to try a myriad of treatments, or to people who didn't obey warnings about unhealthy lifestyles. This idea that disease is somehow a choice is a common attitude with many physical illnesses, but somehow remains a point of debate for mental illness.

The responsibility to seek treatment for depression rests with the patient, but to accuse us of the sin of pride only increases the speed of an already vicious cycle, especially when pride is at the other end of the spectrum from the illness's core emotions of guilt and self-loathing. I propose a different conclusion: the judgment that this particular mental illness is self-inflicted in spite of a wealth of anecdotal and medical evidence reveals that pride is most definitely the sin of the accuser, rather than the person imprisoned by a whirlwind of self-loathing thoughts.

Using the distress of people suffering from depression to further a potentially destructive and harmful opinion for personal gain is not virtuous behaviour. Thankfully we do have the power to cure this affliction: the willingness to listen to the voices of the people who are being sorely misunderstood. Together we can overcome this stigma.

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