Famous People With Depression

Before 1970s, being diagnosed of clinical depression was a social stigma. People where so ashamed to even discuss the sickness out in the open not to mention, seek treatment which was a shame. Such reluctance can be attributed to ignorance. Today even famous people with depression are no longer afraid to speak about their own struggles whereas, historical personalities who are said to be depressed were diagnosed based on interpretations of written accounts such as letters, diaries, writings, artworks, and tales from their family and friends.

Abraham Lincoln, for example, is said to be depressed based on early written accounts about his so called melancholia. Winston Churchill also suffered from depression according to some historians.

The lead singer of the band Counting Crows, Adam Duritz, suffered from depression and mental illness during the peak of the band’s fame. Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain shot himself in the head after suffering from bouts of depression.

Amy Tan, a highly-acclaimed Chinese American writer also mentioned about her own depression which she admittedly explained is probably biochemical and also thinks it runs in the family. Tan claims that her mother witnessed how her grandmother committed suicide. Anne Rice of the Vampire Chronicles fame was physically ill when her husband died. Such emotional stress also led to a long-term depression.

Among famous people who have suffered from depression, the leading cause can be attributed to substance abuse. Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin is purportedly alcoholic and clinically depressed.

The fact that people who experience fame and fortune also have their share of depressive symptoms shows that depression does not only happen to the underprivileged and that there are more things in life than what material wealth can fulfill. Famous people with depression who have both the money and prestige can merely verify such social fact.