Depression Depression is one of the hot issues for our community today. Depression is a term that people usually use to refer to states involving dejection, sadness, lack of self-esteem, and lack of energy. Depression is one of the most ordinary and serious mental conditions in the United States today. Many people overlook depression which can be unsafe. There were a number of deep research projects has been done in that field of psychology. This paper will discuss three of them: the work of Maureen Empfield Understanding Teenage Depression: A Guide to Diagnosis, Treatment, and Management, Raymond Ross Psychological Measurement of Anxiety and Depression, and Helping Your Child Cope With Depression and Suicidal Thoughts by Patros, P.G.
and Shamoo, T.K. Maureen Empfields Understanding Teenage Depression: A Guide to Diagnosis, Treatment, and Management It is shocking to know how many adolescents actually do suffer from this disease, as Maureen Empfield M.D. explains in his Understanding Teenage Depression: A Guide to Diagnosis. Maureen Empfield conclude that as many as eight percent of adolescents suffer from depression at some time during any one year period, making it much more common than for example, eating disorders, which seem to get more attention as a source of adolescent misery. Parents of adolescents need to recognize symptoms in their child to get him or her the help he or she needs. If it is caught early enough, there is a good chance of curing it (Empfield, 18).
The Term Paper on How The Mass Media Effects Teenage Girls part 1
How the mass media effects teenage girls Have you ever been fat? If you can eat everything you want to and still can hide behind the mop you are a very lucky person. Its a pity that great amount of people need to confine their food and are stick to different diets. You can ask: why these people suffer so much? Who force them to starve? Can you believe that they do such things by themselves? And ...
In the second section of the research, Maureen Empfield dwell on adolescents that suffer from depression are more likely to give in to peer pressure and take up bad habits. These can all be warning signs to look for in the majority of teenagers.
Genetics and environmental factors seem to play a big role in causing depression. Research has indicated that genetics do play a role. “Adolescents are five times as likely to suffer from depression when someone in their family has suffered from it in the past” (Empfield 54).
Another major cause of depression according to Empfield are traumatic events. Depression usually follows the death of a loved one, a sickness, near death experiences, or any types of physical and sexual abuse. It is normal to feel depressed after any of these, however, many times they feel hopeless or suicidal.
Depression is evident if depressed symptoms persist more than two or three months after a traumatic episode. Another big problem and cause of depression in adolescents is stress. The ages of fourteen through nineteen are very important in this issue. These are the ages when homework starts to get tough, teachers are hard on students about grades, peer pressure with friends, relationships, and trying to fit in occur. Empfield explains this. Teenagers after a first episode of depression are more likely to have behavior problems, excessive emotional reliance on others, and more physical health problems than others. They appear to be left with psychological scars (Empfield, 41).
Raymond Ross Psychological Measurement of Anxiety and Depression Raymond Ross in his Psychological Measurement of Anxiety and Depression dwell on symptoms of depression. Raymond Ross think that to diagnose a person with depression, he or she must experience certain symptoms for at least two or more weeks. Raymond Ross describes many of the symptoms associated with depression. Some symptoms include a persistent low mood that doesnt lift, oversensitivity, isolation from friends and family, difficulty with attention, difficulty sleeping, gain or loss in weight, and low self esteem (Ross, 29).
These may seem like everyday emotions for most people. However, in depressed people they are more extreme. They also last for long periods of time, many up to a year.
The Essay on Anti depressants And Their Link To Adolescent And Teenage Suicide
Abstract Two percent of preteens and five percent of adolescents suffer from depression (www.about-teen-depression.com 2004). There are specific signs and symptoms associated with depression, which are helpful in detection of the illness. There are various ways to treat depression, such as medication, group therapy, and/or herbal supplements. There are pros and cons with each treatment, but the ...
Ross comments on this. Its not just that one in 30 young people between the ages of 14 and 16 get depression. Somewhere between one in six and one in ten of those young people will have that depression for at least two years (Ross, 62).
Other behaviors that should be watched for are: irritability, aggression, restlessness, and withdrawing. The person usually become highly emotional and avoid relationships with the opposite sex. Depressed adolescents frequently use alcohol, smoke cigarettes, or use drugs to make themselves feel better. Suicide is the worst consequence of untreated depression.
Empfield supports that suicide is occurring too often. For adolescents, suicide is the third leading cause of death just behind car accidents and homicide (Empfield, 41).
Almost all adolescents who try or do commit suicide were heavily depressed. About half of the depressed population of adolescents have thoughts about committing suicide or wanting to die, even if they dont carry it out (Empfield 62).
Suicide is the cause of major depression in teens. It is the most important reason why depression needs to be taken seriously.
Even though depression is more common among girls, it should not be overlooked in boys. More girls than boys attempt to kill themselves each year, however, more boys actually succeed. Helping Your Child Cope With Depression and Suicidal Thoughts by Patros, P.G. and Shamoo, T.K. Many reasons why teens go to this extreme is because they do not have any support from friends or family. Patros, in his Helping Your Child Cope With Depression and Suicidal Thoughts, describes the social origins of depression.
The researcher discusses the parents positive influence on depressed children in the body of his research. Patros stresses the importance of good communication in the family. If good communication habits are not fostered when children are young, then in the later adolescent years the barriers may serve to keep the adults at a distance (Patros, 138).
Suicidal victims do not think anyone cares about them. They usually feel they have no where to turn and nothing will ever get better. Patros suggests another reason.
They also make cognitive errors in overestimating the seriousness of their problems and by not considering enough solutions to the problems. Families that are negative and less caring usually show no or little support for their depressed teen. Many times parents dont even realize that their child is depressed. “Parents may be completely unaware that their teenager has thoughts of committing suicide-many kids, even kids who are highly verbal and expressive, just keep it to themselves” (Patros 62).
The Essay on Depression Time Illness Depressed
Depression Everybody has 'the blues' or 'feels down' from time to time. It's normal to feel sad for short periods, especially if something bad had happened in our lives. But those of us who suffer from depression have much more than 'the blues', and our feelings can last for a long time. There are many sufferers of this illness; at any one time, 5% of Canadians are depressed, and 10-20% will ...
Therefore, these kids are less likely to get help and more likely to attempt suicide. Adolescent girls are more susceptible to suffer from this disease than others. “Many times small changes like weight gain or loss, pimples, and height can be a factor in producing depression” (Patros 21).
In most cases this makes girls uncomfortable and they do not want to talk about it with an adult. Depression can then occur which can predispose them to worse or similar states. Probably the number one effect of depressed teen girls are eating disorders. After their bodies begin to change and stressful things begin happening, they may turn to anorexia or bulimia for comfort and control. “Bulimia and anorexia are often accompanied by other psychiatric disorders, most commonly by depression- as many as half of kids with eating disorders are also depressed and the two disorders may be linked genetically” (Empfield 106).
These can in turn cause many health problems in the future which is another source for later depression. Conclusion Empfield gives a complete picture of adult depression results but his arguments about child depression results do not disclose the true reasons of the disease.
I think that eating disorder is the real cause of the depression but not the main one. Empfield pays particular attention to traumatic events as a cause of depression and I think that is one of the most fundamental chapters of his Understanding Teenage Depression: A Guide to Diagnosis, Treatment, and Management. Raymond Ross has found the core of depression in loneliness of the person. I think that this is right but not for all people because for some people the solitude is only way to avoid depression. But I agree with Raymond Ross about some physical transformations that may result deep depression because of the disappointed results of diets and other efforts. Patros dwells on family relations as a guaranty for keep off depression. He describes teenagers suicidal tendencies brilliantly.
The Essay on Eating Disorder Depression Disorders Emotional
Anorexia and bulimia are excessive eating disorders. Anorexia is the act of starving oneself, usually to maintain a certain physical image. Bulimia is a disorder in which one person eats an excessive amount (bingeing) and then purges the food on purpose. Bulimics usually induce vomiting or use laxatives of some sort. There are many similarities in both illnesses, the most common being the cause. ...
I think that family must be the everyday fort for any person and especially for teenagers. People are extremely vulnerable at teen age so the only place where they may feel safe is their family. I agree with Patros that this should be the core point for parents today.
Bibliography:
Empfield, Maureen Understanding Teenage Depression: A Guide to Diagnosis, Treatment, and Management Owl Books, 2001 Ross, Raymond Psychological Measurement of Anxiety and Depression Dublin Publishers, Dublin 2003 Patros, P.G. and Shamoo, T.K. Helping Your Child Cope With Depression and Suicidal Thoughts. Lexington, 1990..
