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Cited by 107Mental Health and PsychiatryBipolar Disorder and TreatmentPhenomenology and Existential Philosophy

Feeling and time: The phenomenology of mood disorders, depressive realism, and existential psychotherapy

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Ghaemi, S. N.·2006·Schizophrenia Bulletin
DOI 10.1093/schbul/sbl061PMC PMC2632297
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Abstract

Phenomenological research suggests that pure manic and depressive states are less common than mixtures of the two and that the two poles of mood are characterized by opposite ways of experiencing time. In mania, the subjective experience of time is sped up and in depression it is slowed down, perhaps reflecting differences in circadian pathophysiology. The two classic mood states are also quite different in their effect on subjective awareness: manic patients lack insight into their excitation, while depressed patients are quite insightful into their unhappiness. Consequently, insight plays a major role in overdiagnosis of unipolar depression and misdiagnosis of bipolar disorder. The phenomenology of depression also is relevant to types of psychotherapies used to treat it. The depressive realism (DR) model, in contrast to the cognitive distortion model, appears to better apply to many persons with mild to moderate depressive syndromes. I suggest that existential psychotherapy is the necessary corollary of the DR model in those cases. Further, some depressive morbidities may in fact prove, after phenomenological study, to involve other mental states instead of depression. The chronic sub-syndromal depression that is often the long-term consequence of treated bipolar disorder may in fact represent existential despair, rather than depression proper, again suggesting intervention with existential psychotherapeutic methods.

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  • A considerable body of evidence supports the use of existential therapies to address the existential fears that often underlie depressive disorders.

    “In light of evidence supporting a relationship between depressive disorders and death anxiety, a considerable body of evidence supports the use of existential therapies to address the existential fears that often underlie depressive disorders (Ghaemi, 2007;Stalsett, Gude, Ronnestad, & Monsen, 2012).”

    From Death anxiety and its role in psychopathology: Reviewing the status of a transdiagnostic construct (2014) · cites this paper as Ghaemi, 2007

    In “Clinical Implications: Existential Psychotherapy” (page unavailable), the paper suggests existential psychotherapy may suit people with mild depression under the depressive-realism model and that some apparent depressive morbidity may be existential despair. It does not establish a considerable body of evidence for the therapy or say that existential fears, specifically death anxiety, often underlie depressive disorders. (LLM, conf=0.86)

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  • Depressive disorders may be associated with, or exacerbated by, existential despair and lack of meaning.

    “Depressive disorders may be associated with, or exacerbated by, existential despair and lack of meaning (Ghaemi, 2007;Havens & Ghaemi, 2005;Simon, Arndt, Greenberg, Solomon, & Pyszczynski, 1998).”

    From Death anxiety and its role in psychopathology: Reviewing the status of a transdiagnostic construct (2014) · cites this paper as Ghaemi, 2007

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2 of the 85 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.

Research works printed but not linked: 4

  1. Jaspers K. General Psychopathology: Volumes 1 and 2. Balti- more, Md: Johns Hopkins University Press; 1997. (1959).
  2. Minkowski E. Lived Time. Chicago, Ill: Northwestern Uni- versity Press, 1970.
  3. Alloy LB, Abramson LY. Depressive realism: four theoretical perspectives. In: Alloy LB, ed. Cognitive Processes in Depres- sion. New York, NY: Guilford Press; 1988.
  4. Hoffmann SO. Neurotic depression-a disease without a diag- nosis or a diagnosis without a glossary? Z Psychosom Med Psychother. 2003;49:346-362.

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Authors
Ghaemi, S. N.
Affiliations
Emory University (US)
Corresponding author
Ghaemi, S. N.
ORCID
Ghaemi, S. N.
Venue
Schizophrenia Bulletin
Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Published
2006-12-07
Volume
33
Issue
1
Pages
122-130
ISSN
  • 0586-7614 (ISSN-L)
  • 1745-1701
DOI
10.1093/schbul/sbl061
PMC
PMC2632297
OpenAlex
W2116804822
Cited by
107
References
85
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 19 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 6 · 2012: 5
FWCI
21.21
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Schizophrenia Bulletin (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
National Institute of Mental Health (MH-64189, K23MH064189)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › Mental Health and Psychiatry
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Bipolar Disorder and Treatment
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy
Keywords
phenomenology of depression, mood disorders
MeSH terms
Awareness, Bipolar Disorder, Circadian Rhythm, Cognition Disorders, Depressive Disorder, Diagnostic Errors, Emotions, Existentialism, Humans, Internal-External Control, Neuropsychological Tests, Perceptual Distortion, Psychotherapy, Reality Testing, Self Concept, Time Perception, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

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