Utah No. 1 State for Depression... (Tooele, Washington: mortgage, income, tax)

[lolagranola]

I wonder...is there a distinction that can be made here, between culture and doctrine? The LDS church/Mormon lifestyle has a large part in defining the culture of Utah. Discussing life here without LDS influence in the conversation is difficult to say the least!

Originally Posted by DP525

The problem is, most discussions about life in Utah cannot usually be had without mentioning religion. The LDS church is so ingrained in every aspect of Utah living that the two cannot easily be separated. I have travelled all over the US and Europe and when I mention Utah, the word "Mormons" is usually included in the response. The two are nearly synonomous.

[Survey Taker]

Originally Posted by lisan23

anomoly - what I meant by that statement is I know of several women who say they are depressed, hate themselves, etc. They tell EVERYONE they know and they really do it for attention. They're always talking about how they are going to kill themselves. Then when someone steps in and tries to get them help they don't take it. Suddenly they're not depressed anymore. (I honestly think that these women may be bipolar.)

That is really sad. Those woman sound like they need serious help.

Originally Posted by lisan23

Keeping up with the jones attitude is hardly Mormon. It's PEOPLE who are putting this attitude out. In fact, the LDS church recently released a statement saying it is trying to encourage members to be debt free and to wisely invest their money. If you really believe in the LDS faith, then you'd realize that what other people are doing isn't important, and you'd be living a more simple life.

That is great advice. It doesn't matter if you're religious or not. A simpler life is how people should live. I wish more people lived that way. They'd understand what true happiness & freedom is. I live that way and feel lucky enough to enjoy the positive benefits.

st

[7th generation]

The Church is to blame for depression? Hmmmmm......I'd agree with the earlier poster that this time of year inversions are the culprit.
I was trying to remember if it was '84 or '85 when we had 40 straight days of foggy, cold, depressing weather.
Drive up the canyon and it'd be 20* warmer and sunny .........the skiing was great!!

[sterlinggirl]

the LDS church recently released a statement saying it is trying to encourage members to be debt free and to wisely invest their money.

Don't most LDS couples pay more in tithing every month than they do towards principle on their house?

If so, that's pretty darn depressing.....

[lisan23]

Originally Posted by sterlinggirl

Don't most LDS couples pay more in tithing every month than they do towards principle on their house?

If so, that's pretty darn depressing.....

Tithes are supposed to be 10% of your income. If that's more than the principle loan on their house, they must make a TON of money and live in a pretty modest house. There might be other situations where it's possible, but it's not likely.

So if they are paying more in tithes than on the principal of their home loan it's probably by choice because of the home they purchased and their income.

[anomoly]

Originally Posted by Survey Taker

That is great advice. It doesn't matter if you're religious or not. A simpler life is how people should live. I wish more people lived that way. They'd understand what true happiness & freedom is. I live that way and feel lucky enough to enjoy the positive benefits.
st

There's a term for this: it's called Affluenza, and it's been sweeping the nation for years now.
There's a great documentary on it, sometimes shown on Free Speech TV (FSTV), LINK TV, or the Documentary Channel. It's excellent, and well worth your time, if you can find it.

[coolcats]

Originally Posted by sterlinggirl

Don't most LDS couples pay more in tithing every month than they do towards principle on their house?

If so, that's pretty darn depressing.....

That's pretty cynical. I have a great personal story about tithing and housing payments. But it fits in the religion forum.

[j1n]

I would tend to think almost the opposite. Utah is such a beautiful state...I would think that some folks would be depressed to not live there!
Who cares what the Jones' do?! Live life. Look around at the open spaces, snow capped mountains, red rocks, big blue sky, sunshine...
Hey...what were we talking about...?

[Aerorick]

I can't stand it. If it's been recognised that Utah has the highest rate of anti-depression use in the country there must be something to it. And since the state is predominately LDS there might be a connection to that also. But one common discription of how some local people feel about themselves and their neighborhoods is how at peace they are and how they are filled with happiness. I'm sorry, but anyone who claims to be in a state of happiness and peace all the time is either the Dali Lama, dead or on Valium. Those states of mind are very fleeting and temporary and even then depend on each individuals definition of it.
But worse, the striving for such an illusionary state can drive anyone to mental issues if they don't even know what they're looking for. Commercials are full of images and narrations about how one will finally achieve peace in the world if they buy a Cadillac or plasma TV.
Like many medical conditions eg. Alzimers, Diabedis and Depression, nobody seems to know if they've actually been around as much as they are now and only now being recognised by the improved healthcare or if they've increased for some reason. In any case many people insist on thinking that depression is something just made up by someone and can be dealt with by prayer, positive thinking or living a "better" lifestyle. But those who suffer from it know it has little to do with the environment and is a real physical, albeit nuerological, condition the doctors know the basic causes of. And in most cases, thankfully!, can be treated.

[anomoly]

Originally Posted by Aerorick

I can't stand it. If it's been recognised that Utah has the highest rate of anti-depression use in the country there must be something to it. And since the state is predominately LDS there might be a connection to that also. But one common discription of how some local people feel about themselves and their neighborhoods is how at peace they are and how they are filled with happiness. I'm sorry, but anyone who claims to be in a state of happiness and peace all the time is either the Dali Lama, dead or on Valium. Those states of mind are very fleeting and temporary and even then depend on each individuals definition of it.
But worse, the striving for such an illusionary state can drive anyone to mental issues if they don't even know what they're looking for. Commercials are full of images and narrations about how one will finally achieve peace in the world if they buy a Cadillac or plasma TV.
Like many medical conditions eg. Alzimers, Diabedis and Depression, nobody seems to know if they've actually been around as much as they are now and only now being recognised by the improved healthcare or if they've increased for some reason. In any case many people insist on thinking that depression is something just made up by someone and can be dealt with by prayer, positive thinking or living a "better" lifestyle. But those who suffer from it know it has little to do with the environment and is a real physical, albeit nuerological, condition the doctors know the basic causes of. And in most cases, thankfully!, can be treated.

I used to think I was the Dali Lama, but he assured me it was "Mania"!