[robotkilla]

> more a case of social media bringing deeper problems to the surface than social media being the actual cause

I think its a combination of both. You draw a parallel between social networks and budweiser. Alcohol worsens depression and I believe social networks do as well. Whether or not they CAUSE depression is a totally different matter of course.

> depression... distorts your worldview

I think this should be up for debate as well. Even though I've echoed this sentiment myself, as someone with depression I'm starting to suspect that my own is brought on due to a very accurate understanding of the world. I've been painfully aware of my own and my family's place in the world (lower-middle-class) since I was a kid. My own and my family's mortality is another thing that makes me extremely depressed if I allow myself to think too deeply about it. Wars, world injustices, the ultimate meaninglessness of life... I've been thinking about all of this since I was around 5 years old. That's not a distorted worldview, its reality.

I think a lot of my own depression stems from the inability to block out all of the negative things in my life. Once I started meditating, stopped following the news so closely, got rid of my repressive religion, stopped letting lack of funds ruin my day (partially by blocking out all advertising), deleted my social networks and got into an excellent sleep routine I've been able to manage my depression and I feel a lot better.

[pfortuny]

I think rather than being a "very accurate understanding of the world", it might be characterized as a "very acute understanding of the world without pleasurable inputs." At least that is the way I perceive my own feelings (I am a fellow sufferer).

Sleep and "news deprivation" have both been very helpful to me as well, as has meditation.

[J-dawg]

Thank you for this comment.

> very acute understanding of the world without pleasurable inputs.

This sums it up perfectly. It's also what makes depression so dangerous. When you're at your lowest point you don't feel like you have a distorted worldview at all. You feel like you're seeing the world perfectly clearly. Of course, you're actually not. You're blocking out all the wonderful stuff that actually makes life worth living.

Blocking out news and advertising wherever possible has helped me too. And yes, this included quitting Facebook.

[elevenfist]

In the event that this helps anyone:

I've since realized that a lot of my unhappiness was created when I started reading all this news about how much money people like Zuckerberg were making while fucking up the world. It's great and amazing that we have access to this information, but expecting my own life and experiences to be different, or expecting myself to be wealthier or more powerful than I am just causes unhappiness when I'm not. I can't ignore these problems, but I had to accept where I am and stop beating myself up over it. Part of that comes from realizing I can remain calm, and work towards a better future, fixing problems as I know how to solve them.

[RUG3Y]

I'm a lot like you. Thanks for your response.

[robotkilla]

I don't know if you meditate but I can't overemphasis how much mindful meditation helped me when I was spiraling, especially during panic attacks and especially at night.

I downloaded a video of a monk teaching it a while back (have since lost the vid so I can't say which one it was) -- i don't agree or believe in any of spiritual teachings associated with meditation but the physical / mental benefits were impossible for me to deny, even if it was a placebo effect.

I think it probably has to do with focusing your thoughts rather than letting them run wild -- i can't help but think of brains like a computer, and mine tends to get stuck in a recursive loop of negativity, but mindful meditation would almost always break me out of that loop.

Interestingly when I was religious I would pray during those same panic attacks (and always at night) and it would also calm me down. My former religion would have us pray as though we were actually carrying on a one sided conversation with god... being that I'm an atheist I think of prayer as a form of meditation now so i think the effects are very similar.