There is no lack of theories as to the cause of depression: repressed anger; low serotonin; high cortisol; low dopamine; insomnia; trauma; thought patterns; hormonal imbalances; dissociation, etc.

I would say yes to all of these theories. The problem seems to be that many clinicians become married to a particular viewpoint and espouse that above all others. Human beings are complex, and seldom do I see an issue being contributed to by solely one cause

As clichéd as this statement has become, you really do need to take a holistic approach to treating each issue, particularly with depression. Western medicine is primarily focused on symptom suppression and management. I was taken aback as a new therapist at how many clients I started to work with who had been through years of therapy had not been asked some basic questions about potential underlying causes of their depression.

Although medication has been a great benefit to certain individuals, there is no doubt we are an overmedicated society. Many of the symptoms that are labeled pathological are normal responses to situations, such as grief after the death of a loved one. One needs to feel this sadness to be able to process the loss. If the level of sadness begins to impede functioning, then a person needs to seek help of some kind at that point. However, the first line of intervention would be to help that person process their grief. Only if they become hindered to a certain level would medication be advised.

It is a shame that we now frequently treat sadness with medication rather than helping an individual learn how to process and cope with their sadness, which has an adaptive purpose. Ironically, suppressed sadness is often a cause of depression. This is an example of how dysfunctional treatment for depression can be: I am depressed due to my inability to feel my sadness so I am medicated to suppress my sadness further.

Other sources of depression can be suppressed anger one blocks through self-attack, recurrently shaming oneself, lack of self-care, and poor nutrition. The idea that depression is as simple as a chemical imbalance is naïve and ignorant. But it is simple and makes sense for insurance companies and makes a lot of money for the pharmaceutical companies.

If you are struggling with depressive symptoms, which is what I prefer to call it rather than depression, find someone who will take a holistic approach and not just throw medication at the problem or pathologize you. Again, I am not against medication as an intervention. But experience has shown me it is only necessary in a minority of cases, not by the millions of prescriptions written every year for antidepressants. Treating depression in such a simplistic manner is causing the prolonged suffering of millions of people and making others tremendously wealthy.