Tag Archives: psych 100

Major Depressive Disorder- A History and Personal Reflection

Everyone has those thoughts. Doom and gloom, and an overall lack or interest in doing anything. No one is alone in these feelings. However, there are some extreme case of these feelings known as Major Depressive Disorder. It can be a crippling disorder in which the person loses interest of former favorite activities, a loss of interest in family and friends, as well as a feeling of helplessness. The feeling of helplessness is the huge part in this disorder that makes it clear as to what disorder it is. However, the big point that sets regular depression apart from Major Depressive disorder is that the state of depression lasts for a long time, roughly two weeks or more. Depression is often compared to the common cold due to the fact that it is so common among people around the world. This is true shown that one of the most common drugs prescribed is Zoloft or its generic name Sertraline.

Major Depressive Disorder is something that I myself have to deal with on a daily basis. I was officially diagnosed with the disorder about a year ago and I myself am prescribed by my doctor Sertraline. This is something that runs in my family as my father as well as various other relatives have been diagnosed with MDD. As a person living with this disorder, it feels like a struggle when hit by the effects of the disorder. The biggest problem for me is the fact that I don’t always take my medicine all the time like I should due to the fact that one of the medicine’s side effects is drowsiness. I experience all of the symptoms that come with it, including thoughts of self-harm. When completely struck with the effects, I do not do things that I thought was fun or interesting like weight lifting and at times prefer to be along around no one and stay locked in my room by myself. It is a difficult thing and is a struggle to stay out of the ruts that MDD puts me in.

Mirror Neurons

I distinctly remember the Steeler’s 2008 Super Bowl victory over the Arizona Cardinals.  After leading most of the game, the Steelers were down with less than three minutes to play.  The Steelers responded with a 78 yard drive down the field that ended with Santonio Holmes’ impressive game-winning catch with only 35 seconds left.  I recall the nervous, sick to my stomach feeling during that entire drive.  You could literally cut the tension in my living room with a knife.  My friends and family’s eyes were all glued to the television filled with anticipation and adrenaline.  The excitement in the room after that long drive was palpable.  We all felt the highs and lows of the game almost like we were on the field in Florida.  But we weren’t in Florida, we were in my living room back in Pittsburgh.  So why then, did we experience the game as if we were players on the field?

The answer is mirror neurons.  Neuroscientists have discovered special neurons in our brains that activate equally when we actually perform an action and when we are just watching someone else perform an action.  Although I just watched the players on television, my mirror neurons activated in the exact same manner as if I was the one actually playing the game myself.  Mirror neurons provide insight into why we feel empathy.  For instance, mirror neurons are at play when I see a football player take an especially hard hit on the field.  I wince as if I felt the force of the impact myself.

Mirror neurons not only explain empathy, but they explain observational learning.  Children are able to learn a great deal through just observing those around them and mimicking what they see.  For example, neuroscientists believe that mirror neurons play a significant role in learning language.  According to Michael Arbib, a neuroscientist at the University of Southern California in a 1998 article, a mirror neuron system located in the front of the brain in an overlapping circuitry for sign and spoken language, helps humans learn the intricate lip and hand gestures associated with language.1 Additionally, many neuroscientists believe that mirror neurons may play a role in autism.  According to a study published by U.C.L.A. neuroscientist Mirella Dapretto, those suffering from autism can recognize an emotional expression in others’ faces and in their own faces, but perhaps due to faulty mirror neurons, not know what it means to feel that emotion.1

The implications for future mirror neuron research are enormous.  They clearly play a huge role in how we learn through mimicry and how we empathize.  Future discoveries will probably only identify more aspects of our lives that affected by these impressive neurons.

1http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/10/science/10mirr.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0