One Clear Dot

The latest “Well, duh” headline of the week is the one I just saw on CNN’s website.

Are creativity and mood disorders linked?

It’s heart-warming that psychology researchers want to put funding into figuring out if certain patterns of creativity go hand-in-hand with conditions like bipolar disorder and depression. There have, in fact, been over 20 such studies. Way to beat a dead horse, huh?

While “experts” say mental illness does not cause creativity and that creativity does not actually contribute to mental illness – these studies still continue.

Digging deeper, researchers are still looking for a link. Paul Verhaeghen, associate professor of psychology at Georgia Institute of Technology, feels when people send a good bit of time in a reflective mode; they are prone to both creativity and depression. Other research cites sensitivity to one’s surroundings as a cause of depression.

I will have to read through more of the studies. I am curious to see if any of them introduced conditions like drug use. If people are using anything from cold medication and diet supplements to the abuse of prescriptions or illegal drugs, surely the issues of oversensitivity to one’s self and surroundings would be compounded.

Though there might not be a cause and effect relationship, there is obviously a connection. It exists, but all the funding and studies dedicated to the issue cannot prove that one causes the other. Therefore, it seems logical to me to just move on and accept that it’s real. Treat the disorders.

Posted on October 7th, 2008 by onecleardot
Filed under: Healthy Living