What was depression called in ancient times?

Depression, also called melancholia, a modern term was born in the west. There are similar expressions in Chinese medicine, such as "depression" and "depression", which refer to both emotional diseases caused by anxiety and depression and physiological reactions such as stagnation of qi and blood.

There are many "melancholy and sickly bodies" in ancient books, and Qu Yuan, Zhao Kuangyin, Li He and others are also listed as famous depression patients in ancient times, but tracing the orthodox origin of depression has to start from the west.

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The Times of Depression: Melancholy, a melancholy English word, comes from the Greek melainachol, which means black bile. The ancient Greeks believed that personality was influenced by mucus, yellow bile, black bile and blood, and too much black bile would lead to depression.

At the end of 5th century BC, Hippocrates, known as the "father of medicine", realized that depression was caused by a mixture of internal and external factors. He dismissed the popular "divine therapy" of praying to heaven at that time, thinking that it was all deceptive, and proposed taking Datura flower and other herbs to relieve constipation or induce vomiting in order to achieve the effect of rebalancing body fluids. Hippocrates also suggested that King Pa Dickas II marry the woman he loved to treat depression.

In the Middle Ages, Christianity ruled the whole society, and depression was regarded as a malignant disease. Thomas Aquinas, a famous theologian, believes that the soul will not succumb to physical diseases, and it is not under the jurisdiction of God, nor is it tempted by the devil. Depressed patients, together with all mental patients at that time, were considered condemned by the gods because they did not believe in God and could not be redeemed.

Depression was moralized in the Middle Ages and romanticized in the Renaissance. Traditionally, witchcraft is associated with depression in northern Europe, while genius is compared with depression in the south. This source can be traced back to Aristotle, who thinks that depression is not a bad thing, and that "people who are outstanding in philosophy, poetry, art and politics" all have melancholy characteristics.

17th century is a rational era in Europe, and great achievements have been made in the fields of physiology and anatomy, providing a materialistic basis for people to understand mental illness. 162 1 Robert Burton's analysis of depression is the epitome of previous research results on depression. At that time, people were regarded as machines, and the representative figure was the philosopher Descartes.

When pure reason was too boring, romanticism began to rise. From the end of 18 to the Victorian period, depression also changed, which was regarded as an insightful psychological state by people at that time. Kant believes that "melancholy can be far away from the worldly hubbub" and that "virtue based on norms has one characteristic, which seems to be combined with the melancholy of the soul to achieve the highest harmony.

Modern understanding of depression mainly comes from psychoanalytic theory and psychobiology. Freud said that depression is a form of sadness, which is caused by the loss of original desire, appetite or sexual desire. "People who lose their desires tend to be depressed." Kraepelien, the founder of modern psychiatry, divides depression into three types, from the slightest mental laziness to the most serious symptoms, including "dream-like delusions and hallucinations".

People's Network-History of Depression Struggle