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Remedies Against Sadness of the Soul | Dr. Joe Wurtz

Joe Wurtz

Today there is a lot of public attention around mental illness especially the rise of anxiety and depression among young people. However, it’s not just young people; anxiety rose across all demographic categories since 2008. Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the US affecting 19% of the population. These trends are distressing, but are anxiety and depression something new to the human condition? Certainly not. While we may not have the stats to show the comparison, anxiety, depression – what the medieval thinkers referred to as “sadness of the soul” – has been around since the dawn of humanity. The question before us is: how do we remedy this aspect of the human condition? We will explore certain insights into remedies that St. Thomas Aquinas provides for those of us who struggle with the daily grind of life that causes sorrow sadness.

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