Abstract
SELECTED CASES CASE 1. —William Styron, author of several novels, including Lie Down in Darkness, Confessions of Nat Turner , and Sophie's Choice , became clinically depressed in 1985 at the age of 60 years. In his book, Darkness Visible (the title of which was taken from Milton's description of hell in Paradise Lost ), he provides an extraordinary account of the symptoms and course of his illness. I have chosen to include a few of his observations herein because they seem to illustrate important connections between depression, sleep, and a classic symptom of depression—diurnal variation in mood. Styron's depression began when he stopped drinking alcohol. Gradually, he developed anhedonia and feelings of worthlessness and had thoughts of death. Ultimately: The act of writing itself, becoming more and more difficult and exhausting, stalled, then finally ceased. 1(p46) As is typical in depression, the severity of Styron's symptoms had a striking daily rhythm:
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
