Sian, I’m coming read a title about what is called “post-Avatar depression”. It sounds exactly like what happens to me every time I watch a deeply ridiculed and quite absurd big-budget movie – but I feel like it’s… something else.

It all started after the release of the first Avatar in 2009: people started posting on a fan site, Avatar Forums, that they felt depressed and dissatisfied with their lives after watching James Cameron’s film, about the attempt of humanity to colonize a virgin planet called Pandora, home of the Na’vi, a blue humanoid race. Humanity seemed out of step with the natural world, they thought, especially compared to the spiritual and eco-friendly Na’vi.

“Since I went to see Avatar I was depressed. Watching the wonderful world of Pandora and all the Na’vi made me want to be one of them,” one wrote. “I’m even considering killing myself thinking that if I do I’ll be reborn in a world similar to Pandora and everything is like Avatar.” Another asked: ‘Are there other people who think humanity is going south?’

The thread received more than 1,000 messages from people around the world with similar feelings; it became so popular that a second thread was created for more space, and the discussion spread to other fan sites. It was picked up by the media in 2010 and eventually labeled post-Avatar depression syndrome (PADS).

Wait, what do you mean by “tagged”? That’s not a DSM-level diagnosis, is it?

The most important thing is that the feelings people have are very real and often very disturbing to them. But no, PADS is not a medically recognized condition – nor does it appear to be a public relations campaign. It is an observable phenomenon.

It seems Avatar uniquely elicits similar feelings in disparate people, but the feelings it elicits – grief at feeling disconnected from nature, worries about the future of our own planet, and dissatisfaction with modern life – are all very normal feelings to have given how we have built our world and our societies. And it’s worth noting that many of the original posters on these forums were of young men, who also wrote about feeling lonely at school or without support at home.

“It took the best of our technology to create this virtual world, and real life will never be as utopian as it looks on screen. It makes real life more imperfect,” Dr. Stephan Quentzel, a New York psychiatrist, told CNN in 2010 as an explanation.

Interestingly, PADS was not limited to the movie release; individuals have talked about watching Avatar for the first time since its release and have always said they have similar feelings. A fan recently felt that 10-20% of people using Avatar fan forums claim to have experienced it.

Is there a remedy?

Ancient Forest Alliance, a Canadian non-profit dedicated to protecting ancient forests, has developed a three-step cure for PADS: “Get out and experience nature, take action to defend nature, and inspire others to do likewise. »

Fans have also started sharing tips on ways to reduce consumerism and waste, and how to engage more with the natural world. A Swedish fan, Ivar Hill, wrote on the forum when he was 17 years old: “When I woke up this morning after watching Avatar for the first time yesterday, the world seemed… gray. It was like If my whole life, everything I’ve done and worked for has lost its meaning. It seems so… meaningless. I still don’t really see any reason to keep… making things. I live in a dying world. But after talking to fans, he started reading philosophy and spending more time in nature by hiking. “Avatar made me feel like I could sit in a forest and just be,” Hill told The New York Times last month; he’s now in his thirties and married to a woman he met on an Avatar fan forum he started.

And, as is so often the case in fandoms, there’s a touching camaraderie to be found. In a 2021 episode of the How To documentary series with John Wilson, he sits down with a group of Avatar fans who started dating in 2020. Part of their meeting is just nerds, but a many of them talk about their struggles with depression and how they found solace in each other.

“For me, post-Avatar depression hit hard because I tried to escape my reality,” one says, tearfully recalling how another Avatar fan saved his life. after posting on a forum about suicidal feelings. “Ultimately, it comes from a desire to want something better,” he thinks, of the PADs. “But just because we have that desire, I think it drives us to make the world we live in a better place.”

Finding your people is a cure for all ills.

The following, Avatar: The Way of the Water, finally came out. How is everybody ?

Some are obviously very excited. But great fan Hill told The New York Times These Days It’s Just Another Movie For Him: “It’s going to be really interesting to see, but it’s not like I’m counting the days.”

It seems like even for big fans, it’s a little weird to have a sequel for a 13-year-old movie described as “the most popular movie that nobody remembers.” But who knows, maybe Avatar: The Way of Water could spark a wave of activism to save the oceans.

Crisis services can be reached 24 hours a day: Lifeline 13 11 14; Suicide Reminder Service 1300 659 467; Child helpline 1800 55 1800; MensLine Australia 1300 78 99 78; Beyond the blue 1300 22 4636