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brandchannel: Dr. Pete Markiewicz: Who's filling Gen Y's shoe's?
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The Effectiveness of D.A.R.E., Richard Clayton, University of Kentucky
Drug Survey of Students Finds Picture Very Mixed" by KATE ZERNIKE, New York Times, 12/20/05}}
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Thank you for the sources, Jawa. There was a bit of miscommunication in this thread, as I thought you were implying that the prevalence of drugs in our society is the root of the problem. I see now that you're referring to the abuse of drugs (behavioral problems) as the source of many cases of depression, which I agree with of course.
Jawa said:
Just because two lines on a graph show the same slope does not show which one causes the other, it merely shows that both occur at the same time. A person could argue that depression leads to drug abuse. Take heroin tablets for example, having taken it myself due to medical reasons, I know that it's general effect is to block out emotions. Now let me ask you, what kind of person wants to take something so that it'll block out all their emotions? To think that a person would prefer that over feeling emotions at all - thats a pretty unhappy person.
This was actually a point I made through an earlier post in the thread, about the original topic of discussion - heavy metal and depression. The correlation between depression and the affinity for this genre of music didn't reveal enough information for us to cite one as the direct cause for the other and vice-versa. (Something it seems most in this thread agree with as well) I understand what you're saying, the reason I got into drugs originally was due to the fact that I was heavily depressed, and it got to the point where nothing mattered anymore. The risk of experimenting with substances was no longer something I feared.
Although I initially
abused some substances - after some months I learned of harm-reduction education, and toned down my usage considerably. I became interested in researching substances, trip reports, precautions, safety, and generally adopted a more scientific perspective on chemicals rather than simply pursuing recreational benefits. My depression decreased and I gained more self-control. I agree that depression can lead to abuse with many people, our emotions can easily cloud our rationality. I also agree that drug abuse can lead to depression (or exacerbate depression further) depending on individual cases, which are all different.
I'm unsure of what point is trying to be made here, it comes across as a rant. If you are trying to argue a point, could you please outline it more clearly?
I'm saying that more professionals (and communities as a whole) are taking a progressive stance on drug issues in society today, as
harm-reduction education has been helping a lot of people educate themselves about abuse, and has saved lives. Alcohol abuse in particular has caused the most harm.
I'd mentioned other outlets for abusive behavior, some include entertainment (television, internet & video game addiction) gambling, cutting, domestic abuse, etc. I'm pointing out that the same kind of mentality is found elsewhere, it's this kind of thinking that is dangerous, though many people choose to solely blame drugs.
Also, the popularity of television is often exploited by those with the most money. The advertising of products, culture, and ideologies (which can have heavy influence over those who are addicted to mainstream media) can't happen without proper funding, and the intentions behind the advertising aren't always positive. Many scientists working to improve society have relatively little influence over what is aired to the masses. I didn't mean to get too off-topic, but this is very related to depression as well - since a generation growing up on television will develop personalities in response to what they've seen from a young age. (For example, women developing depression and eating disorders from overexposure to our culture's high emphasis on beauty and weight expectations for females.)
I'm also saying that a lack of parenting contributes to this issue, since responsible parents would spend more time with their children, rather than leaving them alone with television, or with ambiguous peers for example - where observational learning can result in many behavioral changes, for the better or worse depending on the group.
Attachment theory has nothing to do with depression, it is related to the subject of sociopaths and delinquents. Who's theories are you basing these ideas off anyway?
I wasn't particularly referring to attachment theory, though I can see how it's related. I'm saying that a lack of parents or proper parenting during one's childhood can be a major source of depression. I don't really think anyone would disagree with that, as it's common knowledge, so I'll assume there was just a misunderstanding. Anyway, since you mentioned attachment theory, I'll refer to John Bowlby himself (the first to publish papers on the theory) and a book of his,
Loss: Sadness and Depression (Attachment and Loss), which talks about the importance of parental roles and a healthy social environment in a child's life.
As for my recurring suggestions (also seen in other threads) that public education should be improved to accommodate more to the individual, and to help children suffering from neglect.. most of these ideas were inspired by my own experiences, or from discussions I've had with others on the topic. Many of my childhood friends who lacked strong families turned to crime. Much of the aggressive behavior I saw developing could be traced to abuse from parents or other peers in the neighborhood, school, and any other situation where observational learning takes place. I really don't want to go into further details about my theories or proposals for social improvement here in this thread, as I fear it's been taken far off-topic already.
I hope I was able to clear up my old post a bit, apologies if anything is still unclear. Should anyone wish to discuss the issues more, I ask that you direct your questions and responses to PM, so that we can let this thread stay on topic.