Depression and Teenagers
There are many misconceptions about depression. Pathological depression is not the "dispirited" or "down" mood, which we all experience from time to time, and which causes us to say, "I'm depressed," but it is a debilitating illness that affects one in five people of all ages from children to adults. It is not just a passing mood swing. Depression can affect not only a person's mood but also his or her ability to function normally. Treatment is available yet quite a number do not seek it. Depression is the most common psychiatric disease in society nowadays. Over eighteen million Americans over the age of eighteen suffer from it. Depression is thought to occur from a chemical imbalance in the brain. Medicines are used to try to correct the imbalance and relieve emotional and physical symptoms. However pathological depression can also occur from stress, a crisis such as a death or other problem in the persons life and even wrong diet. Depression in teenagers has however been underrated as mood swings or that he or she is just going through a "phase". In the past decade, suicide in teenagers has increased by 200% in America, which is a startling figure. Adolescent suicide is now responsible for more deaths in you
With adolescents, two main types of treatments are tried. Either psychotherapy or medication. Usually the two are combined. Psychotherapy involves active listening, motivation in improving their life and thoughts and advice. Usually mild depression is treated this way. For more serious depression, especially where suicidal intentions are shown medication is prescribed. There are many different types of anti-depressants. Traditional drugs have quite a lot of side effects, especially on teenagers, and the new range of elective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which are more tolerable and have a faster working time are being used. Medication however, takes some time to start showing its effects, and improving the persons well being. Generally it takes four-six weeks. In teenagers these symptoms are common; but other signs such as a drop in school grades, loss of appetite or over eating, sleep disturbance ( e.g. staying awake all-night and sleeping during the day) can also be prevalent. Symptoms of depression are varied from person to person, but there are some common ones, such as difficulty in concentration or decision making, pessimism, lessened sexual activity, social withdrawal, temper outbursts, constant tirednes
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Approximate Word count = 841
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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