Free Essays on Depression

Depression Depression is defined in many ways. One definition is â€Å"an emotional state of dejection and sadness, ranging from mild discouragement and downheartedness to feelings of utter hopelessness and despair.† Another definition is â€Å"exaggerated sadness coupled with pessimism†¦which the person thinks will persist indefinitely regardless of what they do about it† (Irwin, p8). Either way, depression is an illness that involves the mind and body. It can affect psychological things, such as the way someone feels about themselves, and biological things, such as eating and sleeping. There are many different types of depression with many different symptoms. Depression also affects many types of people. This disorder can be treated, but it is the person’s responsibility to get help (NIMH, p1). Depression ranges from mild to severe types. A mild type of depression can simply be a â€Å"blue mood† or even just a bad day. Some psychiatrists say that it is normal to feel down when you’re overly tired or stressed. These sieges of â€Å"the blues† generally subside quickly but can also escalate to moderate depression (Irwin, p10). Moderate depression can also be called neurotic depression. This type of depression has the same symptoms as mild depression but is felt more intensely. It can even interfere with a person’s job or home life. This type of depression is almost always a reaction to a loss or an upsetting event. The depression is only considered neurotic when the sense of loss is disproportionate to the event that caused it (Irwin, p12). When the degree and duration of depression become really severe, there are changes in the behavior that can definitely be seen. There is less and less interest in the outside world. A person that has this type of depression, known as psychotic depression, may be incapable of functioning adequately. A person who is at this point may also feel thoughts of death and suicid... Free Essays on Depression Free Essays on Depression Depression is a disease that afflicts the human psyche in such a way that the afflicted tends to act and react abnormally toward others and themselves. Therefore it comes to no surprise to discover that adolescent depression is strongly linked to teen suicide. Adolescent suicide is now responsible for more deaths in youths aged 15 to 19 than cardiovascular disease or cancer (Blackman, 1995). Despite this increased suicide rate, depression in this age group is greatly underdiagnosed and leads to serious difficulties in school, work and personal adjustment which may often continue into adulthood. How prevalent are mood disorders in children and when should an adolescent with changes in mood be considered clinically depressed? Brown (1996) has said the reason why depression is often over looked in children and adolescents is because "children are not always able to express how they feel." Sometimes the symptoms of mood disorders take on different forms in children than in adults. Adolescence is a time of emotional turmoil, mood swings, gloomy thoughts, and heightened sensitivity. It is a time of rebellion and experimentation. Blackman (1996) observed that the "challenge is to identify depressive symptomatology which may be superimposed on the backdrop of a more transient, but expected, developmental storm." Therefore, diagnosis should not lay only in the physician's hands but be associated with parents, teachers and anyone who interacts with the patient on a daily basis. Unlike adult depression, symptoms of youth depression are often masked. Instead of expressing sadness, teenagers may express boredom and irritability, or may choose to engage in risky behaviors (Oster & Montgomery, 1996). Mood disorders are often accompanied by other psychological problems such as anxiety (Oster & Montgomery, 1996), eating disorders (Lasko et al., 1996), hyperactivity (Blackman, 1995), substance abuse... Free Essays on Depression Depression is a psychiatric disorder characterized by feelings of worthlessness, guilt, sadness, helplessness, and hopelessness. It is different then normal sadness or grief from the loss of a loved one because it is persistent and severe. Clinical depression has many related symptoms trouble sleeping, eating disorders, withdrawal and inactivity, self-punishment, and loss of pleasure. People that are depressed do not like to do things they may usually like to. Surveys that have been taken that show approximately 20 in 100 people suffer from depression at any one time. About one if four Americans will suffer from a depression over the course of their lifetime. Depression strikes men and women of all ages, in all races, but most studies indicate that women are more often afflicted. There are two major forms of depression that people get. One form is called depressive disorder. It is diagnosed only by episodes of depression. Episodes can be short or long but are usually brought about by an incident in a persons life. An example of this is if someone close to them dies. The other kind is called bipolar or manic depressive illness, it is recognized by alternating depressed and manic episodes. This is an actual brain dysfunction. In the major depression or the depressed phase of bipolar illness, a depressed mood predominates, even though the patient may not be aware of feeling sad. Typically, he or she loses all interest in activities. Symptoms include sleep disturbances, not able to concentrate or to make decisions, loss of appetite or greatly increased appetite, slowed thinking and decreased energy feelings of worthlessness, guilt, hopelessness, diminished sexual interest, and recurrent thoughts of suicide and death, sometimes leading a person to actually committ ing suicide. In the manic phase of bipolar disorder the patients behavior is bizarre and sometimes obnoxious. Symptoms of this are the person being hyper and have lots of ener... Free Essays on Depression Chapter 16 Psychological Disorders Depression The topic of depression is of special interest to me for a number of reasons. Depression is very common in today’s society and is a very fascinating psychological condition. Also many some of my friends and family members show signs of depression. After reading the textbook and doing some online research, I have come to conclude that my brother has a form of depression called Dysthmia. I have concluded this due to the appearance of some of the symptoms that I have observed in my brother. My brother has a mild form of depression and has feelings of hopelessness and fatigue. The cause of his condition is still unknown to me. But I have formed hypotheses that could explain the cause of the condition. It is known that most of depression has deep genetic roots. The notion of being genetically disposed to being depressed is known. (1). Doing a little bit of research I found out that none of my parents or grandparents were depressed neither am I or any of my other siblings. So the ge netic factor being at play in the cause has to be ruled out. The other factor that I suspect as being a factor in the prevalence of the condition is the fact that my brother has experienced a lot of learned helpless. Learned help nesses is when a person experiences failure after failure at a certain task that eventually he gives up trying. Learned helpnesses has been researched and has been associated with depression (2). I believe that my brother acquired the learned helpnesses when my parents indirectly forced my brother to attend Wayne State University and do the pre-medical curriculum. My parents are determined that we all grow up to be professionals in the medical field and make them proud. My brother had a hard time making the transition from High School to a large scale university and didn’t do as good as he should of. This led my brother to feel hopeless and eventually after all the failures he just stoppe... Free Essays on Depression What is depression? Being clinically depressed is very different from the down type of feeling that all people experience from time to time. Occasional feelings of sadness are a normal part of life, and it is unfortunate that such feelings are often colloquially referred to as "depression." In clinical depression, such feelings are out of proportion to any external causes. There are things in everyone's life that are possible causes of sadness, but people who are not depressed manage to cope with these things without becoming incapacitated. As one might expect, depression can present itself as feeling sad or "having the blues". However, sadness may not always be the dominant feeling of a depressed person. Depression can also be experienced as a numb or empty feeling or perhaps no awareness of feeling at all. A depressed person may experience a noticeable loss in their ability to feel pleasure about anything. Depression, as viewed by psychiatrists, is an illness in which a person experiences a marked change in their mood and in the way they view themselves and the world. Depression as a significant depressive disorder ranges from short in duration and mild to long term and very severe, even life threatening. Depressive disorders come in different forms, just as do other illnesses such as heart disease. The three most prevalent forms are major depression, dysthymia, and bipolar disorder. What is major depression? Major depression is manifested by a combination of symptoms (see symptom list below) that interfere with the ability to work, sleep, eat; and enjoy once-pleasurable activities. These disabling episodes of depression can occur once, twice, or several times in a lifetime. What is dysthymia? A less severe type of depression, dysthymia, involves long-term, chronic symptoms that do not disable, but keep you from functioning at "full steam" or from feeling good. Sometimes people with dysthymia also experience major dep... Free Essays on Depression Overview of Mental Disorders in Children A consideration of developmental principles enhances understanding of mental illness in children and adolescents by reconciling the concept of mental disorder as a stable state or condition with the ongoing development of the child. According to these principles, a mental disorder results from the interaction of a child and his or her environment. Thus, mental illness often does not lie within the child alone. Within the conceptual framework and language of integrative neuroscience, the mental disorder is anâ€Å"emergent property† of the transaction with the environment. Proper assessment of a child’s mood, thought, and behaviors demands a simultaneous consideration of nature and nurture, genes and environment, and biology and psychosocial influences. These relationships are reciprocal. The brain shapes behavior, and learning shapes the brain. Mental disorders must be considered within the context of the family and peers, school, home, and community. Taking the social-cultural environment into consideration is essential to understanding mental disorders in children and adolescents, as it is in adults. However, the changing nature of these environments, coupled with the progressively unfolding processes of brain development, makes the emphasis on context, as well as development, more complex and more central in child mental health (Jensen & Hoagwood, 1997). Thus, developmental psychopathology encourages consideration of the transactions between the individual and the social and physical environment at the same time that signs and symptoms of mental disorder are considered. Moreover, focusing on diagnostic labels alone provides too limited a view of mental disorders in children and adolescents. General Categories of Mental Disorders of Children Mental disorders with onset in childhood and adolescence are listed in Table 3-2 as they appear in DSM-IV. These disorders fall into a number o... Free Essays on Depression Depression is a disease that afflicts the human psyche in such a way that the afflicted tends to act and react abnormally toward others and themselves. Therefore it comes to no surprise to discover that adolescent depression is strongly linked to teen suicide. Adolescent suicide is now responsible for more deaths in youths aged 15 to 19 than cardiovascular disease or cancer (Blackman, 1995). Despite this increased suicide rate, depression in this age group is greatly underdiagnosed and leads to serious difficulties in school, work and personal adjustment which may often continue into adulthood. How prevalent are mood disorders in children and when should an adolescent with changes in mood be considered clinically depressed? Brown (1996) has said the reason why depression is often over looked in children and adolescents is because "children are not always able to express how they feel." Sometimes the symptoms of mood disorders take on different forms in children than in adults. Adolescence is a time of emotional turmoil, mood swings, gloomy thoughts, and heightened sensitivity. It is a time of rebellion and experimentation. Blackman (1996) observed that the "challenge is to identify depressive symptomatology which may be superimposed on the backdrop of a more transient, but expected, developmental storm." Therefore, diagnosis should not lay only in the physician's hands but be associated with parents, teachers and anyone who interacts with the patient on a daily basis. Unlike adult depression, symptoms of youth depression are often masked. Instead of expressing sadness, teenagers may express boredom and irritability, or may choose to engage in risky behaviors (Oster & Montgomery, 1996). Mood disorders are often accompanied by other psychological problems such as anxiety (Oster & Montgomery, 1996), eating disorders (Lasko et al., 1996), hyperactivity (Blackman, 1995), substance abuse... Free Essays on Depression Depression is a mental illness in which a person experiences deep, unshakable sadness and diminished interest in nearly all activities. Depression usually begins during a person’s 20's or 30's. The illness may come on slowly, then deepen gradually over months or years. On the other hand, it may erupt suddenly in a few weeks or days. There are 3 types of depression; major depression, Bipolar depression, and seasonal affective disorder. Many of them come from anxiety or a situation which caused the person to become extremely depressed. Seasonal affective disorder is felt only during autumn and winter, when there are few hours of daylight. Many things can cause depression. Sometimes it is caused from a high amount of stress and conflicts in a person’s life. Some depressions seem to come suddenly, even when things are going well. Most psychologists believe depression results from an interaction between stressful life events and a person’s biological and psychologic al vulnerabilities. Genes may also influence depression by causing abnormal activity in the brain. Neurotransmitters in the brain play an important role in regulating moods and emotions. Neurotransmitters involved in depression include norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin. It is suggested that depression results from lower than normal levels of these neurotransmitters in the brain. An imbalance of hormones may also play a role in depression. The only risk factor for depression is that if a person feels that they are hopeless, worthless, and are full of despair, the may think of or commit suicide. This issue usually takes place in a person’s conscience and it is an emotional issue that the person deals with. This disorder often affects them socially and physically. Depression usually alters a person’s appetite, sometimes increasing it, but usually reducing it. This ma... Free Essays on Depression Treatments for Depression Depression is very common . It is often called â€Å"The common cold of health problems.† At least one in six people experience a depression episode at some point in their life, and about 9.5% of the population and 18.8 million Americans suffer from this illness(Women’s World Source). The National Institute of Mental Health defines depression as â€Å"an illness that involves the body, mood, and thoughts. It effects the way a person eats and sleeps, the way one feels about oneself, and the way one thinks about things. Depression is not the same as a passing blue mood. It is not a sign of personal weakness or a condition that can be willed or wished away. People with a depression illness cannot merely â€Å"pull themselves together† and get better. Without treatment, symptoms can last for weeks, months, or years (Strock).† There are several treatments for depression such as medications, therapies, and of course every person suffering from depression needs some kind of support from family and friends. Before going any further on these treatments some myths about depression need to be made clear. Some people may think that depression is an emotion of sadness, but this is not true. In fact, many depression patients experience numbness or no emotions at all. Also, depression is not an excuse for anything, and it does exclude anyone of responsibility for themselves. Depression is not a weakness, character flaw, or personality trait, and it is not God’s punishment for past sins or bad karma catching up with something the person did in a past life. Someone with depression is not just being lazy, too sensitive, or too immature. Racine 2 The most important thing that everyone should know about depression is that no one ever does anything to deserve it, and no one did anything to cause someone to have it. One treatment for depression is medication. One very common form of medication is selective sero... Free Essays on Depression Depression Depression, it’s something all of us have experienced in some point and time in our lives, whether it was for a day or for years. Most of the people that it affects aren’t even aware of the serious complications depression creates and if they are they don’t admit to themselves they would be clinically diagnosed with depression. It is the second most common health problem; anxiety is the first. Depression is known as the common cold of mental illness. There are many causes for depression. They consist of psychological, genetic, hereditary, or environmental. Psychological depression can be a result of a death of a family member. This is also known as mourning. Serotonin and norepinephrine, a chemical produced in the brain, is not produced in an adequate amount. This is the effect of genetic depression. This causes the feeling of intense sadness. Environmental depression is also known as S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder). This is caused when a person is sensitive to seasonal changes. Hereditary is the most common causes and it is also tricky. It is passed down from past generations and sometimes the defect skips generations. There are several types of depression. There are manic depression, clinical depression, Premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and postpartum depression. Manic depression is an extremity of moods, going from sheer happiness to severe depression. Premenstrual syndrome and postpartum depression are found only in women. Premenstrual syndrome is caused by hormone changes prior to menstruation. Many women suffer postpartum depression after giving childbirth. Many people who are severely depressed, don’t want to believe they are suffering. If they are left untreated, it can result in alcohol and/or drug abuse, disturbed relationships, criminal activities, homicide, or possibly suicide. Many parents of depressed children don’t know their children are suffering. The parents believe their children’s actions a... Free Essays on Depression Depression Depression is defined in many ways. One definition is â€Å"an emotional state of dejection and sadness, ranging from mild discouragement and downheartedness to feelings of utter hopelessness and despair.† Another definition is â€Å"exaggerated sadness coupled with pessimism†¦which the person thinks will persist indefinitely regardless of what they do about it† (Irwin, p8). Either way, depression is an illness that involves the mind and body. It can affect psychological things, such as the way someone feels about themselves, and biological things, such as eating and sleeping. There are many different types of depression with many different symptoms. Depression also affects many types of people. This disorder can be treated, but it is the person’s responsibility to get help (NIMH, p1). Depression ranges from mild to severe types. A mild type of depression can simply be a â€Å"blue mood† or even just a bad day. Some psychiatrists say that it is normal to feel down when you’re overly tired or stressed. These sieges of â€Å"the blues† generally subside quickly but can also escalate to moderate depression (Irwin, p10). Moderate depression can also be called neurotic depression. This type of depression has the same symptoms as mild depression but is felt more intensely. It can even interfere with a person’s job or home life. This type of depression is almost always a reaction to a loss or an upsetting event. The depression is only considered neurotic when the sense of loss is disproportionate to the event that caused it (Irwin, p12). When the degree and duration of depression become really severe, there are changes in the behavior that can definitely be seen. There is less and less interest in the outside world. A person that has this type of depression, known as psychotic depression, may be incapable of functioning adequately. A person who is at this point may also feel thoughts of death and suicid...