FREE ESSAY ON DEPPRESSION AND TEENS

DEPPRESSION AND TEENS

Teenage depression is a growing problem in today's society and is often a major
contributing factor for a 
multitude of adolescent problems. The statistics about teenage runaways, alcoholism, drug
problems, 
pregnancy, eating disorders, and suicide are alarming. Even more startling are the
individual stories behind 
these statistics because the young people involved come from all communities, all
economic levels, all 
home situations-anyone's family. The common link is often depression. For the individuals
experiencing 
this crisis, the statistics become relatively meaningless. The difficult passage into
adolescence and early 
adulthood can leave lasting scars on the lives and psyches of an entire generation of
young men and 
women. There is growing realization that teenage depression can be life- changing, even
life-threatening. 
(McCoy 21)
Depression is a murky pool of feelings and actions scientists have been trying to
understand since 
the days of Hippocrates, who called it a black bile. It has been called the common cold
of mental illness 
and, like the cold, it's difficult to quantify. (Arbetter 1) If feelings of great sadness
or agitation last for 
much more than two weeks, it may be depression. For a long time, people who were feeling
depressed 
were told to snap out of it. According to a study done by National Institute of Mental
Health, half of all 
Americans still view depression as a personal weakness or character flaw. Depression,
however, is 
considered a medical disorder and can affect thoughts, feelings, physical health, and
behaviors. It interferes 
with daily life such as school, friends, and family. Clinical depression is the most
incapacitating of all 
chronic conditions in terms of social functioning. (Salmans 11-12)
Teenagers have always been vulnerable to depression for a variety of reasons. It's a
confusing time 
of life because a teen's body is changing along with their relationships. Teenagers
constantly vacillate 
between strivings for independence from family and regressions to childish dependence on
it. (Elkind 89) 
But today's teens face an additional challenge: They're growing up in a world quite
different from that of 
their parent's youth. Adolescents today are faced with stresses that were unknown to
previous generations 
and are dealing with them in an often self-destructive way. Contemporary society has
changed the 
perception of teenagers. New parental lifestyles, combined with changes in the economy,
often give less 
time and energy for parents to devote to their offspring. Society all too often views
teens for what they can 
be instead of for who they are. Who they are becomes the identity of teenagers today.
They are confronted 
with the ambiguity of education, the dis!
solution of family, the hostile commercialism of society, and the insecurity of
relationships. (McCoy 16) 
This identity is fragile and is threatened by fears of rejection, feelings of failure,
and of being different. 
These young people face stress in school as well with resources dwindling and campus
violence and 
harassment increasing. Their sexual awakening comes in the age of AIDS, when sex can
kill. In summary, 
teens today feel less safe, less empowered and less hopeful than we did a generation ago.
Depression is a 
common concomitant to this struggle. (McCoy 36) It strikes 5% of teens and about 2% of
children under 
12. One in three adolescents in the nineties is at risk for serious depression. (Stern
28)
Depression is the result of a complex mix of social, psychological, physical, and
environmental 
factors. Teens with depressed parents are two to three times more likely to develop major
depression. 
Genetic factors play a substantial but not overwhelming role in causing depression.
(Dowling 37) Some 
type of significant loss can be a factor in triggering teenage depression. Loss can be
due to death, divorce, 
separation, or loss of a family member, important friend or romantic interest. Loss can
also be more subtle 
such as the loss of childhood, of a familiar way of being, of goals through achievement,
or of boundaries 
and guidelines. (McCoy 46-48) Gender differences are becoming apparent, with girls having
more 
difficulty with depression. Studies show girls are three times more likely than boys to
suffer depression. A 
university study showed a close link between depression and negative body image and girls
are usually 
more self-conscious about their bodies than boys. (Sol!
in 157) 
The reasons for depression are not always clear-cut. Although some depressed, even
suicidal 
teenagers come from extremely troubled backgrounds with a lifetime of difficulties at
home and at school, 
the vast majority of depressed teens are not without resources, support, or love. They
simply find, for a 
variety of reasons, that they're feeling overwhelmed by a sensation of hopelessness and
helplessness. It is 
imperative to realize that depression can happen to teenagers, even those who have
everything going for 
them. It can happen to the best and brightest of young people. (McCoy 27)
It's hard to detect depression in teens because it's a developmental stage characterized
by 
considerable anger and withdrawal. Adolescents don't necessarily look sad and depressed
and its normal for 
teens to have mood swings but within limits. A depressed teen may cry for help indirectly
through 
troublesome, even destructive behavior and through physical symptoms. For a teenager to
admit that he or 
she needs help feels like regressing back to childhood. To be a teen means to externalize
feelings and deal 
with the world through action. (Arbetter 6) 
Depression ranks second only to advanced heart disease in exacting a physical toll,
measured by 
days in bed and body pain. It's common for people with depressive disorders to complain
about recurring 
headaches, backaches, chronic fatigue, and insomnia. Being sick can be a binding thing
that keeps the 
teenager tied to parents, if the illness is the only time the teen receives attention and
love from their parents. 
(Dowling 127) The body may signal what the mind is saying through physical symptoms. The
body 
expresses feelings and conflicts that the teenager is unable to verbalize. Physical ills
are often viewed with 
more importance than emotional pain by parents, teachers, or even the teens themselves.
(Papolos 36) It's 
much easier for adolescents to ask for medical care than for psychological help. They
often have a great 
fear of being crazy or of being thought to be crazy. (McCoy 209) Another serious medical
problem that is 
affecting more and more teens is an eating disor!
der. An eating disorder often represents a teenager's attempt to gain some control by
engaging in a 
behavior which can not be regulated by another person. One-third to one-half of patients
with eating 
disorders have a major depressive illness at the same time. (Papolos 72)
More than one million teens, most under the age of sixteen, run away from home every
year. 
They are neither adventurous nor rebellious adolescents, but teens tested and troubled by
life's 
circumstances. A young girl at a shelter for teenage runaways tries to explain why she
has run away from 
home four times in the past two months. Drawing her blanket around her like a cocoon, the
fourteen-year -
old quietly stares at the floor. I'm no good to anyone, I get upset and fuss at home and
it causes trouble for 
everyone. I had to run away to save my parent's marriage. Unfortunately, this story is
not at all unusual. 
(McCoy 22) Of the 1.2 million teen runaways in the United States, an estimated 300,000
have little hope 
or chance of returning home. They often feel things are hopeless and that their parents
would never 
understand. 
Drug use is on the rise among teens as young as thirteen. According to the National
Council on 
Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, about 4% of high school seniors use alcohol daily, while
92% have 
tried it. Millions of teens have had adverse experiences caused by excessive drinking.
(Elkind 203) 
Researchers have found that depressed teens are at particularly high risk for drug and
alcohol abuse. Abuse 
of drugs, alcohol, or other substances are often used to assuage depression. Studies have
found that when 
depressed patients were given treatment, alcohol and drug intake diminished as well.
Substance abuse is 
seen as both a symptom and a cause of depression. (Papolos 66) 
There is more sexual activity among teenagers today than at any other time in our
history. By the 
time they leave high school, some 90% of seniors are no longer virgins. Sexually
transmitted diseases 
among teenagers have reached epidemic proportions. Eight million young people each year
are infected 
with a sexually transmitted disease. Every thirty seconds, another U.S. teenager is
infected. (Elkind 71) 
Sexual acting-out , which can not only be life-changing, but also life-threatening in
this age of AIDS, can 
become an antidote to the loneliness and isolation many teenagers feel. Sexual activity
is often used as an 
attempt to deal with feelings of depression, to increase self-esteem by feeling wanted
and to achieve 
intimacy. (McCoy 21)
Approximately 3,000 teenage girls in the United States will get pregnant today. An
estimated 3 
million teenage girls become pregnant each year. Beth is a shy, quiet eighth-grader who
is expecting a 
baby in two months. Beth admits her pregnancy was intentional and she plans to keep her
baby because 
then I'll have someone of my own who will love me for sure. I won't be alone anymore. 
This illusion of 
unconditional love, coupled with a lack of insight into the unrelenting demands that the
complete 
dependence of an infant brings leads a number of girls to seek pregnancy. Some teens see
parenthood as 
a way to recapture the joy of childhood they are losing, a way to be loved and important
to someone else, or 
as an antidote to depression. (McCoy 81-82) 
Suicide among teenagers has skyrocketed 200% in the last decade. If we were talking about

mononucleosis or meningitis we'd call this an epidemic. (Solin 155) Suicide has become
the second 
leading cause of death among older teenagers. Adolescents are particularly at risk for
suicide attempts 
because they progress through a variety of rapid developmental stages. The seriously
depressed teen may 
often have a sense of hopelessness. Many teens are too immobilized by depression to see
any alternatives 
or to take any positive steps toward change. (Salmans 40)  All too often depressed
teenagers don't have the 
experience to know that time heals, that there is always hope. They don't realize that
they can survive a 
crisis and perhaps even learn from it. Life is often seen in absolutes which intensifies
any crisis. (McCoy 
64)
The destructive potential of serious teenage depression can have many long-lasting
aftereffects. 
Having and keeping a baby, getting into trouble with the law, sustaining a serious injury
as the result of 
risk-taking behavior or stunting one's emotional growth by anesthetizing painful feelings
with drugs or 
alcohol can have a great impact on one's future. It can prevent a young adult from having
a full, healthy, 
and productive life or make it considerably more difficult to do so. Depression is a
growing problem 
amongst today's teenagers. Depression brings with it many problems that can be
self-destructive. If a 
teenager has the benefit of early intervention and help in coping with his or her
depression, however, the 
life script can be quite different. (McCoy 66-67)