Essay - Depression in Adolescents Roughly Nine Percent of the Population -...

Depression in Adolescents

***** n*****e percent of the population - an estimated 18.8 million Americans -- suffers from depressive disorders, illnesses that affect the body as well ***** ***** mind.

The effects of depression are magnified in children, who are experiencing ***** in greater numbers. An ***** 8.3 percent of teenagers in the United States ***** suffering from depression, a significant leap ***** two decades ago. To compound the problem, researchers like Farmer (2002) found ***** about 70 percent of adolescents suffering from depression are unfortunately not receiving adequate treatment.

This paper examines the growing ***** ***** depression among adolescents. The first part of this paper is an overview of teen *****, looking at its causes and contrasting teen depression with depression in adults. The next part *****n looks at the depressive symptoms among teenagers, ***** these with the symptoms of depression in adults. In the last part, ***** paper examines the various approaches th***** have been taken to address the problem of depression ***** adolescents.

Teen depression

Full-blown depression often starts in adulthood. However, Koplewitz (2002) believes that dysthymia or low-grade depression can begin in adolescence or even childhood. Though ***** is recognized as a less severe form of depression, it could *****lso prevent a sufferer from functioning well or feeling "h*****ppy." Furthermore, the appearance of dysthymia before age 21 is often a sign th*****t the sufferer will experience major ***** ep*****odes later in life.

Dysthymia in ***** could also be a precursor to the more severe illness of bipolar disorder. An estimated 20 to 40 percent of teens who ***** depression or ***** often develop bipolar *****. Bipolar disorder is rare ***** ***** but ***** emerge during adolescence, especially in children with a family his*****ry of the disease. Teen *****s of bipolar disorder ***** begin to experience the rapid swings of highs and lows that can take adult depression sufferers years to develop (Farmer 2002).

***** disorder is not as common among teen*****rs ***** depression, and its ***** are usually more severe. During ***** depressed cycle, the ***** individual will suffer the same symp*****ms as major depression. However, in the manic state, the *****' moods can shift abruptly, leading them to act in ways that are rash or even dangerous (Lew*****ohn et al 2003).

At childhood, depression ***** plagues boys ***** girls at the same rates.

*****, researchers like Lewisohn et al (2003) found that depression affects ***** sexes differently. Once they begin to mature, girls are two ***** three times m*****e likely to suffer from dysthymia and ***** than their male counter*****s.

Though ***** differ in degree, teen and adult depression are both rooted in the sa***** potential causes. As ***** its adult counterpart, teen depression could be triggered by a comb**********tion of f*****ors. Adolescents who suffer ***** bipolar disorder ********** have a first-***** rel*****tives who also suffer from the same illness. Teens who have parents with ***** disorder have a 75 percent chance of becoming bipolar themselves. A study of identical twins shows a stronger link,