The link between depression and perfectionism

How are the tendency to be perfectionist and the likelihood of depression associated with each other?

Depression is a very common mental health disorder, and this is, among other things, because this emotional state is not reached through a single pathway, but through several.

Sometimes people talk about depression assuming that it is simply an illness and that, as such, it is caused solely by Biological complications in the person's body; but the truth is that personality traits and life habits can explain much of our propensity to develop this disorder.

In this article we will focus on the relationship between depression and perfectionism, two well-studied psychological phenomenatwo psychological phenomena that have been widely studied and in which points of interconnection have been seen. And it is that many times we tend to associate perfectionism to a positive and useful aspect of the personality (and to some extent it is), in excess it can compromise our mental health in different ways.

What do these concepts mean in psychology?

First, let's clarify the concepts we are going to talk about. Depression is a disorder of the state of the mood characterized by the lack of energy and motivation, the low expectations and a state of sadness or of anguish that makes it very difficult to enjoy the pleasurable experiences of life (a vacation, a dinner in a good restaurant, etc.). As a psychological disorder, its presence does not only imply discomfort: it also negatively affects the quality of life of the sufferer and increases the risk of suicide.

On the other hand, perfectionism is the scrupulousness in assessing the product of our own actions, with very high standards of demand as a reference (which can cause psychological wear and tear, as we shall see).This means that we place a high standard of demand (which can be psychologically draining, as we shall see). This means that we pay attention to the need to do things well, and that the idea of creating something with one or more imperfections generates discomfort.

The relationship between depression and the degree of perfectionism

There are different ways in which tending to a high degree of perfectionism is associated with the likelihood of depression. Here we will look at several of them, although one thing must be kept in mind: being a perfectionist does not necessarily mean that this trait will lead to a depressive disorder. Sometimes, what happens is that what leads us to develop perfectionism also leads us to develop depression.

The differences between the types of perfectionism

First, we must distinguish between two types of perfectionism: perfectionist aspirations and perfectionist concerns.. The second of these forms of perfectionism consists of the propensity to worry about the possibility of doing things wrong, the anticipation of failure if we do not pay close attention to what we do, and the obsession with avoiding a bad outcome. The first, on the other hand, has to do with wanting to be the best version of ourselves and placing importance on doing things in the best possible way.

Thus, perfectionist aspirations are linked to an increased risk of manifesting stress and anxiety problems, while perfectionist concerns are associated with the risk of depression, since those who adopt this type of perfectionism focus their attention on the negative aspect of their own skills and abilities, and spend a lot of time anticipating and imagining bad results in what they do. The latter fosters emotional fatigue and the inability to enjoy oneself.

However, it should not be forgotten that those who go down the path of perfectionist aspirations are also not free from a higher risk of depression, because anxiety has a strong overlap with mood disorders.. In practice, a large number of people who believe that they simply have depression actually suffer from an anxiety-depressive condition. Although anxiety puts us in a "state of alert" and seems to be based on processes that are the opposite of what we understand as being depressed, the wear and tear produced by constant anguish or stress makes it easier for the symptoms associated with depression to fluctuate.

Eating disorders

It has been seen that the risk of developing eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa or bulimia, is associated with the tendency to high or very high perfectionism, which makes sense considering that the discomfort comes from thinking about imperfections in behavior and physical condition.

This is relevant, because as often happens with psychological disorders treatable in therapy, the fact of having developed one makes it more likely that we will develop another one.and depression is at the top of the list of possible risks. And of course, eating disorders also lead to self-esteem issues, which in turn helps trigger depression and make it stick.

Workaholism

The tendency to work too much, closely linked to perfectionism, is clearly related to the risk of developing depression in the medium and long term.

There are different explanations as to why this happens. One of them is that, as "workaholics" transform their work environment into the main focus of interest in their lives, they gradually cut off their ties to the world of work, they gradually sever their links with other sources of satisfaction and social life.When they realize that they can no longer keep up this pace of concentration and effort, they find themselves lonely and socially isolated, with no stimulating hobbies and, in general, no reason to stop focusing 100% of their attention on their work performance.

This is the point at which depression lands, because the day-to-day life of these people hardly offers any significant incentives beyond this spiral of self-demand, and neither does it provide exciting situations or prospects that things are going to improve in a qualitative way.

On the other hand, the extreme preoccupation with producing and doing everything well that causes workaholism is also linked to lack of sleep, another of the phenomena most closely linked to depression. If the nervous system does not have time to recover while we sleep. The chances of developing mood disorders skyrocket.