Retroactive

According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, retroactive is identified as a adjective word. It means “extending in scope or effect to a prior time or to conditions that existed or originated in the past”. On page 91, it states,”I now know many people who have lived with depression, but that’s a retroactive designation.” The word was used to explain that the people he knows has suffered from depression in the past. It’s telling us that people had this problem but never talked about it until they were older.