I'm Still Human: Understanding Depression With Kindness (Expanded Edition - 2021)

Understanding the various R.T.M. factors explains why some people
become depressed but some don’t (despite having similar
stressor/triggering factor, e.g. divorce). It’s because some have risk
factors (e.g. family history of depression) and some don’t. On the
other hand, some with a certain risk factor (e.g. family history of
depression) may not get depression as they are either free from or
able to cope with the triggering factor (e.g. divorce). The R.T.M.
concept also explains why some recover well from depression but
some don’t (due to the presence of maintaining factors).
It’s much more important to know
what kind of person has a disease
than to know what kind of disease a person has
- Sir William Osler -
People with serious and long-term physical illnesses are at higher
risk of developing depression. Depression often worsens the
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