Depression in Adolescents

Depression in adolescents

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Introduction

Depression by definition is simply the mood or emotional state manifested by feelings of low self-worth or guilt and a compact capacity to relish life. It's deemed to be a common cold among many people in our society today. Every human being goes through periods when they face hardships. The stress and mode changes that follow the difficulties fit the emotional state that marks depression. Sadness, pessimism and hopelessness follows. The resulting mental symptoms include disturbed sleep and slowness of thought or action. Depression may be brought about by genetic factors that are hereditary. Cases of depression vary depending on the individual, however; to make diagnosing the problem easier it has been split into many categories. Examples of these are acute vs. chronic and mild vs. severe depression. Adolescence is the period of evolution from infancy to maturity, a stage of significant growth and development in which substantial physiological, cognitive, psychological and behavioral deviations take place. Adolescence is a phase of delight and anxiety; of happiness and troubles; of discovery and perplexity. (Garber, 2006). It seems that the peak age of depression correlates with the peak years of low self-esteem, which is early and middle adolescence with a peak period between the ages of thirteen and fourteen (Garber, 2006). One can ask questions like, is low self-esteem a precursor for depression and other mood disorders? Does a low self-esteem lower the resilience of the adolescent, thereby making him or her more susceptible to depression?

Experts in their analysis have estimated that 5% of all teenagers will suffer from depression. Abramson (1988). Only a small part of this portion are well diagnosed and treated. There are some factors correlated with the depression among adolescents. Some of them include the proper process of maturing and the stress involved in the process. The...