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Depression is very common and, for many, a persistent issue that interferes with job and family life
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Depression
Background
Depression is very common and, for many, a persistent issue that interferes with job and family life. It depletes the drive, vigor, and fun required to cultivate and maintain marital, parental, and social connections. It is an illness with many distinct faces because it can start at different ages, be chronic or wax-and-wane, and can coexist with a wide range of other complicating issues like anxiety disorders, substance misuse, and behavioral disorders. It frequently happens as a contributing factor or a cause of medical disorders. There is a lot of knowledge regarding the prevalence and symptoms of depression in the general population, but there is less knowledge especially about depression in adults who are parents or caregivers. However, it is evident that living with a depressed person also has negative repercussions due to depression’s detrimental and long-lasting effects on personal functioning. Children of depressive parents are at high risk for depression and misadjustment in their social, scholastic, and romantic relationships, and depressed parents have trouble performing their parental and marital responsibilities well.
Research undertaken has shown that one person in fifteen adults is faced with depression per year. Depression occurs at all ages, but it mostly appears in the late teens. Women are more susceptible to depression compared to men. Studies have indicated that women undergo substantial depressive episodes in their lives. Professional psychologists have developed several theories to discuss the personality. One of them is the behaviorist theory, and the other one is the cognitive approach.
Methods and findings
Behaviorist approach
Behaviorism stresses the importance of the surrounding in shaping behaviors. It focusses on responses which can be observed and conditions in which people learn their routines. These terms include operant conditioning, social education history, and classical conditioning. The
DEPRESSION3theory explains that depression results from individual’s interaction with their surroundings. According to humanistic conditioning, depression is experienced through associating particular stimuli with opposing emotional states. Social, educational theory indicates that behavior is acquired through imitation reinforcement and observation. And operative conditioning argues that removing positive support from the environment causes depression. For example, if individual lose a job he will feel depressed because of the reduction of definite help from others.
Those depressed usually become less active socially. Depression can also be caused by careless reinforcement of sad activities by others. For instance, if someone you love dies, you lose an essential source of positive support which leads to dormancy. Getting attention and sympathy from relatives and friends is the most important source of strength. It leads to maladaptive behaviors that are, complaining, weeping and the person talks of suicide (Dygdonand Dienes 2013). These actions finally alienate close friends making them less reinforced, unhappiness and elevates social isolation. Also, those who do not have rigid personality complex find it hard to look for alternative or new sources of support. Such people find themselves locked in a downward spiral which tends to be negative.
Evaluation
Behavioral theory creates an impression regarding responsive depression where the cause of recessions is identifiable. However, the most significant challenge for the assumption is that of depressions which originate from inside their bodies. These are depressions which do not have an apparent cause that is; there is nothing wrong has happened to the individual. Another challenge to the behaviorist argument is that it does not account for the thoughts influence on the mood.
Cognitive approach
The philosophy places a strong emphasis on personal beliefs rather than individual behavior. Depression, in accordance with the cognitive perspective, results from a consistent bias against one’s own interests (McLeod nod). Cognitive abnormality is the root cause of behavioral, physical, and emotional symptoms, suggesting that depressed people think differently than medically normal persons. Changes in thinking are thought to occur prior to the onset of a depressive mood, according to cognitive assumption. The Beck theory is one of the hypotheses underlying the cognitive approach. Leading cognitive theorist Aaron Beck is one of them. Aaron examined affected by depression and realized that they evaluated activities negatively. In his research, he came up with three mechanisms which he thought were accountable for depression. These arrangements included negative personal schemas, logic errors and cognitive triad. Cognitive triad contains three forms of critical and helpless thinking which are common in depressed individuals. They comprise of negative anticipation about the world, their future and themselves. Aaron argues that these thoughts come automatically to depressed individuals because they happened spontaneously. For instance, depressed people see themselves as worthless, inadequate and helpless. They interpret the world events in a defeatist way and unrealistically negative, and they also view the universe as posing barriers which cannot be handled. Lastly, they consider their future as entirely hopeless due to their worthlessness which prevents their conditions from improving. When the person is faced with these three situations, it leads to interference of healthy cognitive development causing impairments in memory, problem-solving and perception. The individual becomes obsessed with disturbing thoughts.
Discussion
Millions of people are impacted by the common clinical ailment known as major depressive disorder each year.
According to the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, “Depression is underdiagnosed and mistreated by most medical doctors, despite the fact that it can almost always be treated satisfactorily.”
A person must have been depressed for at least two weeks or have lost interest in pursuits that ordinarily bring them joy in order to be diagnosed with this disease, according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV). A general medical problem is not likely to be the root of this, as it must be different from how they often act.
Depression is a distinct sickness that affects the “whole body.” All of these facets of a person’s existence—physical features, feelings, thoughts, and behavior—change significantly when they are depressed. (2000) ( Stay wholesome It’s not something you can desire or will yourself out of, and it’s also not a sign of weakness. In some people, depression may only last a few days or even a few weeks, but it can also linger for months or even years in other people. Despite the fact that no one is exactly sure what causes sadness, some people think it may be inherited or the result of a chemical imbalance in the brain. Others think the problem stems from a trinity of social, biological, emotional, psychological, and economic issues. Major Depressive Disorder symptoms are difficult to address since they control thoughts and actions of a person.It is a blessing that improvements in psychology and scientific understanding have made it simpler to manage and treat the severe symptoms of major depressive illness.
Different forms of MDDT can be treated with antidepressants in a variety of formulations.
Three types of psychotherapy—cognitive, behavioral, and interpersonal—have additionally been shown to be effective in treating the illness when combined with medication.
When left untreated, major depression can be fatal. Major Depression has been linked to numerous instances of suicide, according to the records.ConclusionDepression is primarily brought on by one’s environment and beliefs. A person will become depressed if they feel rejected by their friends and family. The people around us, including our family and friends, should therefore teach us to love and appreciate them.. Positive self-talk and confidence in our skills are important. In addition, we ought to think of ourselves as the most effective people. We develop a favorable self-image and feel valued by those around us as a result of such behaviors. Depression shouldn’t cause you to make irrational choices, such as the desire to end your life. People should instead learn to consult doctors and psychiatrists for advice.For people who are coping with Major Depressive Disorder, there is reason for hope. Where there is a will, there is a way. The will to get up and beg for help rests on the shoulders of the individual with the ailment. The treatment can then begin, and instead of a bottomless pit of darkness, he will see a light at the end of the tunnel.
COVID-19 pandemic
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The ways by which the COVID-19 pandemic has affected my communication
The coronavirus pandemic has really affected the way I communicate with us. Communication has really changed and cannot be compared to the way it used to be. For me, it has disrupted the nonverbal communication that we used to take for granted. Nowadays, I don’t have maximum interaction overall with individuals outside of the individuals I live with. I also spend more time on Skype, zoom, and other media platforms. The idea of social distancing has affected effective communication. During the mandatory quarantine in the coronavirus period, many of my associates work at home with little to no face-to-face interactions. I only effectively communicate with my family members who are close to me, but communication with other individuals has majorly been affected.
The coronavirus crisis has transformed the manner we communicate. The measure to keep social distance and the advice to wear facial masks has made us find other alternatives for gestures, greetings, and other nonverbal cues I used to take for granted. The changes that I face have minimum face-to-face interactions, and when we are communicating face to face, we ought to wear masks. I have been surprised with how many phone and video calls I have made and received since the coronavirus pandemic started. Communication for me nowadays is on virtual platforms. In the last month, I have scheduled video conferences, Face time dates, and received impulsive communications that proceed on for thirty minutes or more, something that I have never done since I was young. This pandemic has made it harder to convey emotions that I can just show through the culturally diverse repertoire of body language.
Depression in Men
Depression in Men
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Abstract
Most individuals associate depression with women and ignore the fact that men are also vulnerable to the disease. However, with various studies being carried out on the issue, it has been found that more than 6 million men suffer from depression annually. This is an indication that the mental illness has no bias between the two sexes (Gorman, 2006). This paper will explore depression in men highlighting explanations as to how depression in men is much different than depression in women, in addition to, pointing out to differences in symptoms between the sexes. Furthermore, the literature review will also discuss several cultural and social influences that add to these differences and show some cross- cultural similarities, if any, in prevalence of depression and presentation of symptoms.
Introduction
Causes of male and female depression and anxiety are usually quite different from one another. It has not been established quite well if stress affects women and men differently. However, as the two genders operate in different ways and in distinct social contexts, they both tend to show different dispositions of emotions and personality characteristics. As it follows, their coping mechanisms and responses to stressful circumstances are also different. Over time, depression usually occurs in about 20% women when compared to only 10% of men (Gorman, 2006). Although the real reason for such a disparity is not well documented, the higher the incidence of the illness in females is usually accounted to a number of gender- related differences in certain factors of biology, cognitive styles and a higher prevalence of economic and psychosocial stresses and difficulties in women. Possible mechanisms of biology might include differences in the function and structure of the brain, genetic factors and mood- related or cognitive- behavior affects of female gonadal steroids on enzyme function and neurotransmitters in vulnerable individuals (Gorman, 2006). The causes of these disparities in prevalence of depression have been studied on for numerous years with differing results and conclusions.
Literature Review
Women and women share similar core set of symptoms of depression. These include such things as lack of motivation, depressed mood, and loss of happiness, inconsistencies with sleep, difficulties concentrating and feelings of guilt. Nevertheless, numerous studies have been conducted to study depression in both men and women and concluded that there are some distinctions in the pattern of symptoms shown in women and men (Gorman, 2006).
One such study was launched to look into how men express sadness and feelings of depression in both women and men. The study established that women were more probable to show visible signs of stress or emotion like throwing tantrums and crying. The men, on the other hand, seemed more rigid and were less likely to show any visible emotion. Another study wanted to establish the gender differences in showing symptoms commonly associated with men like anger and irritability. The survey established that not less than three quarters of the 151 depressed individuals who participated in the study showed more irritability, but that there were no significant distinctions between women and men in how often the symptom was expressed or experienced. However, the study found that the male participants suffered twice as frequently as the females from attacks of increased anger- episodes of inappropriate and intense anger. Furthermore, these bouts of anger were observed to be more than thrice as those observed in women (Kessler, et al., 1994).
Other studies carried out on the same subject indicated common symptoms of male depression to include feelings of irritability, withdrawal, isolation, need to keep oneself busy, overdrinking, among others. According to the researchers, these are some of the unhealthy strategies men apply to cope with stressful events and situations. They proposed that the disparity between males and females when it comes to handling stress is that women do not usually go for these coping measures (Kindler & Prescott, 1999). They opt for other coping mechanisms that are seen as healthy like talking to someone or crying. As it follows, depression affects men differently than it affects women. Therefore, when depression occurs in males, it is in most cases severe than the one observed in females, only that it is usually masked by the unhealthy coping mechanisms described above. The researchers pointed out that because of a number of reasons, some of which include masking depression, the illness goes unnoticed and, therefore, untreated in many men. However, they indicated that the illness gets much better after treatment (Kindler & Prescott, 1999).
There are several reasons as to why male depression goes untreated. One of them is failure to recognize the illness. Many males ignore feelings and emotions associated with women like feeling emotional and sad. However, these are not the only symptoms of depression as numerous men think. Other symptoms include fatigue, headaches, digestive problems, chronic pain and irritability. When men ignore such symptoms, which women unlikely ignore, their illness goes unnoticed and untreated. Another reason why depression in men goes undiagnosed is downplaying symptoms and signs. Unlike women, most men do not like to admit to how much depressed they are, and they opt to ignore the symptoms rather than seek medical help (Kornstein, 1997).
Reluctance to share and discuss symptoms of depression with another party also contributes to the large number of undiagnosed depression patients. Men generally do not like to share feelings or talk about themselves. Therefore, when affected by certain ‘women- like’ symptoms they might be reluctant to seek help. Resistance of mental health treatment, especially because of fear of stigma also increases the cases of undiagnosed depression. Men usually avoid and refuse treatment when they realize that they have depression or other emotional disturbances (Kornstein, 1997).
Male depression leads to a lot of the same general symptoms as female patients do. However, it has been indicated that men are usually more willing to acknowledge symptoms as irritability, fatigue and loss of interest in work and social activities and changes in patterns of sleep and eating than they are to admit to symptoms of emptiness, sadness, guilt and worthlessness, as many women do. There are also some common reactions to male depression that are unique to men more than they are to women. For instance, most men turn to drug and alcohol abuse when depressed. They do this mainly to try to numb their symptoms, and they are more willing to do this than ask for help unlike women (Kornstein, 1997).
It is also common for men to turn violent when they are suffering from depression. The combination of anger, alcohol and frustration usually makes them violent and abusive. Women are not likely to be violent or abusive. Other men cope with depression by engaging themselves in behavior that is reckless. Most men lose interest in everything and, as a result, do not worry about anything in their lives. Because of this, attitude men usually find themselves behaving dangerously and recklessly. Suicide is also another common element associated with depression. Although more women that are depressed try to commit suicide, studies demonstrate that males are 4 times more probable to die than women are by suicide, particularly in the United States (Kornstein, 1997).
Numerous studies have been conducted to look into the reasons why these differences in symptoms and coping mechanisms occur in men and women suffering from depression (Winkleret al., 2006). Male depression is usually an expression not commonly associated with men and not usually approached as it in the case with female depression. Because of the reactions of men to the symptoms and signs of the illness and standards the society sets, male depression is usually different from female depression (Kornstein, 1997).
There are numerous reasons why this is so. The first reason has to do with the different approach to roles of gender in the society. While women are usually free to show their emotions and feelings, men are expected to do the exact opposite. The role of men in the society is usually led by cultural functions that require them to act strong and tough and do away with emotions. As it follows, when a male finds himself being overwhelmed by emotions he finds it easier to hide some emotions as opposed to a female who free to express them. Because of the male roles in the society, male depression is commonly associated with symptoms of self- criticism and emotional repression. On the other hand, women usually have depression associated with low self- esteem and dependency. Men become violent, commit suicide and abuse alcohol because of repressing their emotions (Kornstein, 1997).
The idea and perception of mental health treatment and help is another significant reason as to why men respond differently to depression than women. Because men are expected to remain strong at all times and need no help, they find it difficult to seek medical help unlike women who are used to being dependant on individuals and sharing. To men, showing up for therapy is a sign of weakness and femininity. Other scientists have also pointed out that there is a biological basis as to why men and women behave differently when it comes to depression. They argue that women show and express emotion because of estrogen and other feminine hormones that affect their mechanisms leaving them vulnerable to emotions and feelings (Kornstein, 1997).
According to several other studies, differences in female and male depression may have both social and biological causes (Winkleret al., 2006). Women are found with the illness more than double the time of men. According to the researchers, the difference in incidence starts at adolescent. Premenopausal and postpartum periods are other vulnerable stages to depression for women, stages men do not experience. Nevertheless, even though there might be hormonal influences that predispose more women to depression than men, males still are likely not to admit to the illness and ask for help. While more women are likely to suffer from depression when compared to men, the men never feel comfortable approaching medical experts about their conditions; therefore, few men ever are diagnosed or treated. As it was seen before, seeking therapy for men is difficult mainly because of their designated roles in the society of being strong and independent (Winkleret al., 2006).
References
Gorman, M. (2006). Gender differences in depression and response to psychotropic medication. Gender Medicine 3 (2): 93-109.
Kessler, R. et al. (1994). Sex and Depression in the National Comorbidity Survey. II. Cohort effects. Journal of Affective Disorders, 30: 15-26.
Kindler, S. & Prescott, A. (1999). A population- based twin study of lifetime major depression in men and women. Archievers of General Psychiatry, 56 (1): 39- 44.
Kornstein, G. (1997). Gender differences in depression: implications for treatment. J Clin Psychiatry, 58 (15):12–8.
Winkler, D. et al. (2006). Gender-specific symptoms of depression and anger attacks. The Journal of Men’s Health & Gender 3 (1): 19-24.