Attorney Depression: Analysis and Therapeutic Treatment
The practice of law in the United States, long celebrated for its rigorous intellectual demands and social prestige, carries with it an often overlooked and deeply troubling undercurrent: a notably high incidence of depression among its practitioners. Recent research has illuminated alarming statistics—attorneys are disproportionately affected by depression and substance abuse compared to the general population. This phenomenon warrants a critical exploration of its root causes, particularly psychological conditioning rooted deeply in the early family environments of many attorneys. From a developmental perspective, many attorneys come from families where emotional expression was implicitly or explicitly discouraged, dismissed, or linked to negative
