Lincoln Letter to John Stuart

[RJNorton]

(01-29-2013 10:00 PM)Craig Hipkins Wrote:  Roger, I would definitely say that "unfortunate life circumstances" would pertain to Lincoln. If you look at his early years (the years where the personality develops) he was subject to great personal loss with the death of his mother.

Craig

Hi Craig. I wonder how doctors define the word "prolonged." If Michael Burlingame is correct, the serious depressions of 1835 and 1841 both lifted after three weeks. Is that too short to be called "clinical depression?"

One thing that might help in an analysis would be the discovery of Lincoln's letter to Dr. Daniel Drake of Cincinnati. Apparently Lincoln wrote Dr. Drake seeking advice regarding depression, and Dr. Drake replied that he would need to see the patient before he could help. Both Lincoln's letter and Dr. Drake's reply have never surfaced.