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Depression, does it stop creativity?

Depression is a double-edged sword. Other people get a burst of creativity through it, while some lose their way (and are thus unable to create something). It basically depends on how resilient the person is. The resilient ones tend to see it as a blessing while the pessimistic ones see it as a curse.
 
Depression can be a very unusual ailment: it impedes you from making certain decisions, but it also makes you do things you wouldn't do if you weren't experiencing it. I had a nervous breakdown in my early 20's after my first marriage failed. I was attending college, tried to keep a home with my then-husband, and also tried to deal with serious infidelity issues. Long story short, I wound up in the office of several therapists, had to take a variety of medicines, and had to change my lifestyle. I was diagnosed with depression, insomnia, and other health problems, and I found myself distancing myself from the things I used to enjoy. What saved me, however, was my passion for photography. Through this very dark episode in my life, I thrived by documenting my day-to-day struggle with depression, and while my struggle showed in my work, I find my photography while having depression very different-- rejuvenating even.

Personally, I don't think depression stops creativity completely, but it does affect your perception of things and it will show in your work.
 
Depression doesn't stop me from being creative. I do paint once in a while and create poems more often than not depending on my mood. In most cases, whenever I feel sad or depressed for some reasons, I tend to do abstract paintings depicting what's on my mind or whatever comes to mind same as with making poems.
 
Depression is when you feel emotionless, you're heartless towards yourself blaming yourself for the little things, you feel like there's nothing ahead and sometimes you feel the need to end it all. so I strongly that depression affects one's creativity
 
Depression makes you feel pessimistic, when a person is in a similar state he basically can't do anything. He's vulnerable. He must climb out of the psychologica ladder to beat depression. It's a terrible stage to be at.
 
Not exactly. There have been many cases where a person has created great pieces or creations when he/she was depressed. Depressed or insane people can actually make genuine art because their pieces contains genuine emotion and themes that relates to them (unlike a happy person creating a depressing piece). Take a look at Vincent Van Gogh's paintings. Or Hideaki Anno's movie and anime. Or any artist who lived in the WW2-era. Depression can't stop creativity (but it does make the person lose any motivation to create works).
 
I believe that depression stops ones creativity for creativity comes naturally in a person, everyone has it it's just that at some other people it is not fully or well developed. Depression can give you works from another perspective, dark and shady perspective which can also be genuinely appreciated by other people too. I also love dark colors.
 
It does - in more ways than one. But there are times when it's the key to unlocking creativity. I wish there's an easier way to explain this but I guess depression is a double-edged sword. For certain people, it hinders their creativity.

On one hand, other people tap on their sadness and anxiety to create something impressive. Let me cite Ernest Hemingway, Virginia Woolf and Sylvia Plath as clear examples. They wrote some of the world's most prized literary pieces. And what they all had in common was that each one of them battled severe depression and sadly lost the fight.

Be that as it may be, depression was a key ingredient to their literary prowess. It helped them channel out thoughts they normally wouldn't have entertained had they not been depressed.
 
The dilemma of the creativity, which is especially true for artists, that they impose pressure on ourselves to make impressive, or at least good, creations. They often fall into thinking that their creations must be meaningful and make sense right off the bat, and if they are none of those things, then self-doubt, fear, and discouragement will seep in and eventually leads into depression.
 
Creativity is about the mind. Depression is about the mind and soul.There's no way depression will set in and fail to affect the mind.Depression affects the rate at which the mind will interpret data because it creates a barrier which acts like a foreign body in the mind.
 
Depression make us feel discouraged and helpless. It make us think that we cannot do anything right. It also make us feel that we are pitiful and powerless.
 
Depression is an insidious enemy that can really mess a person's life. Anyone who has ever gone down that path knows that it can get quite dark, lonely and scary. That said, it is possible to make the best of depression by gaining awareness of what triggers the depression bouts.
 
Depression is a serious case. It is something that needs to be address the soonest possible time. I can say that it did deter my sense of balance that I almost lost track of what I want in life and how I am going to go through it - creativity has been one of them.
 
Yes, it can. One of the hallmarks of depression is that you stop enjoying the things you used to do. Depression can make you feel tired the entire day, you might even find it difficult to perform even the most mundane, everyday tasks. Hence, individuals afflicted with depression can experience a severe lack of creative fuel. On the other hand, some are able to continue their creative activities despite their illness, and at times their depressed mood can even boost their artistic side. Their creative activities become an outlet where they can channel their emotions. A lot of famous artists are known to have suffered depression, these include Van Gogh, Edvard Munch, and Beethoven.
 
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