I think it is very dangerous to have a single "litmus" test for anything, including whether something is or isn't a disease.

This was the crossroads AA faced when I was first seriously trying to quit drinking back in the early 1980s. Swords were drawn: it's a disease! It's a weakness of the will! Disease! Will!

While the adversaries argued it out, millions of us alkies followed along from our neighborhood bars .

I finally went into a hospital-administered AA-styled program that helped me get sober without ever having to answer the question of whether alcoholism was a disease or not. I still don't have a definitive answer, 40+ yrs down the road.

Suffering from depression is a significant problem. Please don't let some academic's publication track complicate your life any more than it already is.

Find a prescribing psychiatrist who will listen to you and work hard to find the best med for you, not simply one that is "good enough." You may need a mood stabilizer in combination with an anti-depressant for the optimum effect for you.

These meds need to be adjusted periodically. With this done, life's good.

Take best care.

Roadie