Child Depression and Risk Factors
Major depressive disorder, or MDD, may affect up to twenty percent of the adult population. The recognition of depression as a serious and common mental disorder has been vital in the identification and treatment of depression in adults. Leaps and bounds have been made in the field of depression research. The widespread recognition of the many possible causes of depression, including chemical imbalances with genetic or medical origins as well as traumatic life events, has made it possible for those suffering from depression to openly seek treatment options and discuss their depression without necessarily feeling the same overwhelming shame and isolation that were inevitable in generations past. Depression is more likely to be identified in an affected individual by family members, physicians, or others because of the public information that is available for professionals and the common people. Research is constantly revealing new treatment options, identifying causal factors, and overall quickly improving the outlook for depressed adult individuals. Unfortunately, there exist a significant number of individuals suffering from depression that are not benefiting from the research developments, educational
Childhood abuse is another factor which will predispose children to depression. In the article "Sexually abused children 5 years after presentation: a case-control study," (Swanston, et al 1997) from the journal Pediatrics, specifically discusses the effects of sexual abuse on children. Children that have been sexually abused have significantly more behavioral, mental, and emotional problems than their peers that have not been abused. Levels of depression are particularly high among sexual abuse victims and survivors. Other compounding factors include the fact that the parents of a sexually abused child may be unavailable for emotional support for many reasons, including that parents may feel overwhelming guilt and depression themselves for not protecting their children. In other cases, the parents are the perpetrators of the abuse, and are unavailable for emotional support for this reason. Even when familial, socioeconomic, and other factors are considered, there still remains a much higher rate of these disorders in sexually abused children. "The abused children displayed more disturbed behavior, had lower self-esteem, were more depressed or unhappy, and were more anxious than controls. Sexually abused children had significantly higher levels of bingeing self-injury, and suicide attempts." (Swanston, et al 1997) As many as 62 percent of females and 19 percent of males under sixteen have been sexually abused with direct physical contact between the abuser and the child (Swanston, et al 1997), though these statistics admittedly have a number of inconsistencies, and cannot take unreported sexual abuse into account. However, even if the lowest percentages in this range are considered, this is a significant problem that leads to both temporary and long-term mental disturbances. The need for further research in the area of childhood depression is therefore blatantly obvious. The well-being of children relies on the dedication of adults to researching and developing solutions to problems. Major depressive disorder is indeed a childhood problem. The purpose of the proposed research at hand is to study some of the important primary issues which must be addressed when studying depressive disorders in children. Age 6 - 8: Vague somatic complaints (such as chronic abdominal pain and headaches), aggressive behavior, resistance to new experiences and people Age 9 - 12: Excessively morbid thoughts, worry about homework, self-blame
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Approximate Word count = 4541
Approximate Pages = 18 (250 words per page double spaced)
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