Adolescent Depression and Suicide
Many people seem to feel that adolescent depression is just somethingthat teenagers go through and that there is no real reason to be alarmed.Instead, these young individuals will grow out of it as they get older.However, depression is very real, and it is a disorder. These individualscannot just 'snap out of' the problems that they are facing. All toooften, these adolescents end up taking their own lives when theirdepression gets too painful for them and they have not received the helpthat they need. Even the medications that are designed to help them getthrough the depression can sometimes make things worse, as variousmedications for depression and anxiety carry a risk of suicide, especiallyfor young people, when they are just starting or just getting off of the It is important, therefore, to look at the problem of adolescentdepression and suicide from the perspective of the different kinds ofdisorders that cause it and the ways that these disorders can be managed sothat the depression can be reduced and the risk of suicide lessened. Inorder to do that, the paper will examine major depressive disorder,dysthymic disorder, and bipolar disorder. Also dealt w
Psychodynamic approaches, or psychosocialapproaches, generally translate in lay terms to counseling or therapy ofsome kind. These skills are so vital because just thinking about something in adifferent way does not always lead to proper behavior. This is significant, because it allows practitioners and researchers thechance to see if what they have done so far is working, or if there isstill much more work to be done. For those that have depressive or other disorders, however, medicationsand other treatments and vital to ensuring that these adolescents feelbetter and enjoy their lives once again. There are several waysto treat this disorder, and the most common is with medication. The highest, risk, however, is from adolescents that already have amental disorder. Noticing thedepression and not saying anything about it, or refusing to see it for whatit is will not help the adolescent's struggle and may result in a suicideattempt if not treated. Conclusion and Recommendations for Future Research As can be seen by some of the statistics and information provided inthe previous pages, the subject of adolescent depression and suicide is adelicate one and is very serious. If the adolescenthas been exposed to suicide early in life, they often have a stronger riskof committing that act themselves (Rubenstein, Heeren, Housman, Rubin, &Stechler, 1989). Types of Mood DisordersMajor Depressive Disorder The different types of mood disorders are one of the most importantthings that should be discussed. Even those that did not have one-on-onecounseling or therapy found that there was improvement when they wereinvolved in a program that dealt with family therapy and coping skills. Among adolescents age 9-17 5%have depression, and depression can lead to suicide if it goes untreated(Shaffer, Gould, Fisher, Trautment, Moreau, Kleinman, & Flory, 1996). One study that was conducted by NIMH in 1997 indicated thatadolescents that suffered from depression and were treated by therapistshad a 65% remission rate and responded to treatment much more rapidly thanthose adolescents that were treated with support and concern from theirfamilies only, instead of professional intervention (Brent, Holder, Kolko,Birmaher, Baugher, Roth, Iyengar, & Johnson, 1997). Bipolar disorder is characterized by manic episodes where aperson seems so happy that they are almost euphoric and depressive episodeswhere the same person may seem unhappy and hopeless when regarding thefuture. Many people appear to think that adolescent depression is just aphase that all children go through, and they will simply grow out of itwhen they grow up.
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