Houellie,

"....Sophistry on the other hand...."

Your point being....?

pelican, "That is a salient point in this discussion. Fear is a big factor in the 'going with the current' analogy. Fear of failure and fear of having to re-enter the system should things fall flat, and maybe not being able"

That is a slanted world view that is talking. A jaundiced opinion that is dismissive (why?) of the actual nature, causes and severity of depression. Maybe if you consider that women can also suffer from depression. That might cause you to go a little deeper than the superfical and convenient view that blames the victims for their 'choices'. That it is simply a state of mind that the sufferer can easily change. His fault. He just needs to be told or informed by a brochure.(sic)

onthebeach,

One would have to grant that you're a master at "attempting" to skew people's comments into themes which you can attack...it's a pity you're not better at it, because it's so obvious.

Poirot,

You persist in your inane, prejuduced view that depression is the fault of the patient and can be corrected by going fishing. Mental health specialists disagree with you, saying that people with your view actually deter sufferers from seeking care.

There is no way a major depressive illness is going to be 'cured' by some hopeful telling the patient to buck-up, get a grip of himself or go fishing.

Suicide is not just about feeling sad.

I'd be prepared to stick my neck out and say that major depressive episodes (not illnesses) are nearly always reactive in some way, especially for mature men and women and that it's the cognitive feedback they give to that reaction that determines whether it's a major problem or a mere bit of misery.

Teaching people ways of dealing with their validly-derived emotions that are not going to reinforce negative, depressive patterns, but instead damp them, or medicating them to reduce the severity of the depressive effects is fair enough, but it's not solving the problem.

How to make men feel they are needed is the problem.

I hope that the incoming government does something for men that isn't just a vehicle for someone to make money by doing an insultingly puerile set of advertisements.

The first task for mental health professionals appears to be reiterating that clinical depression is an illness, a medical condition.