Depression in adolescents Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Depression in adolescents - Essay ExampleSome researchers have suggested that even among psychiatrists . . . the extent of the deterioration caused by falloff is vastly underestimated. (Empfield, 2001) Further, it is logical to argue that major depression causes more long-term forgiving misery than any another(prenominal) single disease. (Empfield, 2001) Diagnosing and treating such a disease as ahead of time as possible in an individuals life whitethorn enable it to be effectively eradicated for their later years. sequence some early childhood depression does occur, the condition mainly appears in the teenage years. It will last out with the patient, become episodic or cause drastic symptoms such as suicide if it is left untreated.The causes of depression in general are still somewhat controversial within the medical community situational and biologic theories often conflict, while those that argue for a situational and biological cause are perhaps gaining ground. The phys ical features of the genius of person place uprighting from depression/who are liable to depression. As Cynthia Haines puts it, there is absolute proof that tidy sum suffering from depression have changes in their brains . . . the hippocampus, a part of the brain that is vital to the storage of memories, is subtle in those people. (Haines, 2005) A smaller hippocampus has less serotonin receptors, and it appears that serotonin is important for the brain to go with the body, as well as a regulator of mood. A lack of serotonin appears to cause depression. on that point are also genetic causes of depression, or at least the propensity to become depressed seems to dismission in families. As Haines (2005) puts it, children, siblings and parents of people with severe depression are much more likely to suffer from depression than are members of the general population. However, despite current searching, scientists have yet to discover the gene that may cause depression. (Alpert, 2005) The fact that both psychosocial and biological factors cause and maintain depression seems accepted, but the exact elan in which they combine is not certain.One reason that teenagers appear to suffer from more depression than other groups may be the quality of life estimates that individuals constantly make. As Miller et al (2005) suggest, quality of life reflects the patients overall sensed satisfaction or quality. . . . Teenagers often have a much lower perception of their lives than other age-groups, due(p) to the physical, emotional, psychological and economic changes that are occurring to them. Teenage depression may express itself in different slipway than adult depression. Thus teenagers may exhibit additional psychiatric disorders, such as behavior disorders or substance abuse problems. (www.focusus.com) Often these additional symptoms seem to swamp the signs of depression and so the teenager may be treated (and/or disciplined) for the symptoms of depression when in fac t the cause is not looked at. Thus a teenager who is suffering from depression may drink alcohol excessively, indulge in highly uncertain behavior or take drugs. These acts will be more visible than the underlying depression, and so are easier to latch onto for parents, school authorities and the police. Another complication is the fact that parents need to be able to bring out the