As mentioned in the last post (Part 3 in this series) people too often think of depression as merely being a collection of sad thoughts and feelings. But it’s actually a complicated system of forces, all working together to generate an overwhelming sense of futility.
Depression Inc. (autism spectrum disorder and depression Part 3)
This is part of a continuing series on autism spectrum disorder and depression.
In Part 1, I provided a broad overview of the topic. It’s worth going into more detail about depression at this point due to it’s uncanny ability to go undetected by the outside world. It can be a dangerous situation, especially for those on the spectrum; as described in Part 2, depression can hide behind autistic traits creating a “masking effect”.
Aspergers and Depression: the masking effect (autism spectrum disorder)
In the first part of this series on autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and depression, I offered a broad description of how depression operates. (Please click here for a post that collects and summarizes every article in this Aspergers/depression series.)
What makes depression so dangerous for someone on the spectrum is that it can actually hide behind autistic traits. My fear is that too few people realize: depression and ASD have several features in common, creating a kind of masking effect. A trait commonly associated with ASD can in some cases be depression masquerading as that trait, thus allowing it go undetected. (And in some instances, the reverse can also be true, where depression makes it harder to detect autistic traits.)
Aspergers and Depression (Part 1)
I.
This is the first part in a new series. Future posts will look at specific ways that Autism Spectrum Disorder, Aspergers and depression can intertwine, but I wanted to start things off with a more general discussion. (Click here for Part 2 or here for a post that collects and summarizes every article in this series.) [Read more…]