What is taboo?

"Taboo" is another interesting word that has strayed somewhat from its original meaning. Originally a Polynesian word, it seems to have first come into the light of investigation several hundred years ago by early foreign visitors to Polynesia and the Hawaiian islands. It refers to something set apart for or consecrated to a special use or purpose. A taboo can also be placed on an object, person, place or word that is believed to have inherent power above the ordinary. The breaking of a taboo usually requires extermination of the offender or some sort of ceremonial purification (The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th).

These days, taboo generally refers to a topic or activity that we avoid or prohibit due to social custom. For example, it's generally taboo to walk around naked in public even though this generally does little harm to anyone else. This sort of silent avoidance stifles free and candid discussion with and about the mentally ill.

In such ways we preserve our ignorance of the facts about mental illness. And ignorance preserves mystery and mystery produces myth and myth stifles fact which defines stigma and taboo and encourages ignorance. It’s a vicious circle.

In this way, the mythology of depression is at best harmful and at worst downright dangerous. To remove the stigma and lift the taboo, we must replace myth with fact and ignorance with understanding.

That is what this web site is all about.

But what is the modern mythology of depression?

There is a persistent myth that antidepressant drugs are addictive. They are not. Nor are they habit-forming. Some do need to be withdrawn slowly to avoid sudden changes in brain chemistry and some resulting symptoms, but the effects of sudden withdrawal have nothing in common with the horrors of withdrawal from addictive drugs.

There is also a myth that antidepressants alter normal behaviour. They do alter depressive behaviour and allow the normal personality to re-emerge from the shadows. They are not "happy pills" as some press reports seem to suggest. If a person was not particularly jolly, gregarious or confident before being depressed, they are not going to become any more jolly, gregarious or confident from antidepressant treatments.

There is also the myth of the "Prozac Personality." This is an invention of headline writers who needed a catchy phrase to lure readers. Depression is an illness that over-rides and stifles the true personality. Depression is not part of the personality. However, sometimes the illness can be so long-standing that it might seem a part of the personality even though it is not.

Then there is the popular mythology. A recent survey in the US found that more than half the people surveyed thought depressed people were just lazy. We know that depression often involves lack of motivation, feelings of fatigue, lack of co-operation, and lost productivity. It also shows how easy it is to see the symptoms and come to the wrong conclusion.

There is also a common belief that depression is the first slip on a short slide into the "loony bin". This is sheer imagination. It is true that people at risk of suicide may be hospitalised for their own protection. And those with severe depression that does not get better with ordinary treatment may go into hospital for specialised treatment. Hospitalisation is a far cry from the horror scenes sometimes portrayed on film and television. These inaccurate portrayals have unfortunately fed the myths.