This paper will focus on the distinctions between the symptoms of Asperger’s syndrome and depression symptoms in adolescents. Misdiagnosed children suffer silently, facing academic difficulties. A strategy for early detection, treatment and prevention of depression within the school setting is an effective approach for success.
The Differences Between the Two Disorders
Asperger’s syndrome is an autism spectrum disorder. The most notable characteristics are social and communication difficulties. As an Asperger’s teen, the pressure of social acceptance is high. Establishing and maintaining friendships are formed in school. Failed attempts often lead to depression.
Depression is a serious mental illness that can manifest into physical illness as well. The earlier the diagnosis of depression, the quicker treatment can begin. The problem is that Asperger‘s and depression have mimicking traits which makes early depression diagnoses difficult. Given the amount of time adolescents spend with educators and school personnel, it makes the most sense that the school authorities know how to distinguish between the two.
The Cause for Alarm and Immediate Attention
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention stated that “as many as one in 88 children will be diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder by age eight“ (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (2012). The Center for Disease Control and Prevention also said that “among high school students in the United states, 26.1% of those surveyed reported feeling sad or hopeless almost everyday for two or more weeks in row” (as cited in Abel & Erickson, 2013, p.283). The feelings of sadness and hopelessness are two of the most common symptoms of depression. However, according to Dopheide (20...
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Kim, H. J., Park, M. H., Park, S. & Yoo, H. J. (2013) Anxiety and depression symptoms in children with Asperger syndrome compared with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and depressive disorder. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 22(4). 559-568.
Lee, G. K., Lipinski, A. M, Lopata, C., Mcdonald, C. A., Rodgers, J. D., Smith, R. A., Smith, T. H., Thomeer, M. L., Toomey, J. A., & Volker, M. A. (2012) Feasibility and initial efficacy of a comprehensive school-based intervention for high functioning autism spectrum disorders. Psychology in the Schools, 49(10). 963-976.
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National Institute of Mental Health. NIH Publication No. TR 10-3561. Web. 2013
First, those who suffer from Asperger’s tend to lack the basic social skills required in everyday life, such as hugging, communicating, or expressing their feelings. For example, in “The Curious Incident” Christopher hits people who touch him in an unwelcome manner. So when his father became angry with him, and he latched onto Christopher’s arm: “I don’t like when people grab me. And I don’t like being surprised either. So I hit
Asperger´s disorder is not a disease, but a developmental brain disorder. It is four times more prevalent in boys than in girls and it shows no racial, ethnic or social boundaries. Family income, lifestyle and educational levels do not affect the chance of Asperger´s disorder's occurrence. According to Hans Asperger:
Beck, A. T., Steer, R. A., & Brown, G. (1996). Beck Depression Inventory-II. Retrieved August 18, 2011from EBSCOhost.
The cause of AS is still very much unknown.Children with Asperger syndrome start to show signs as early as one to two years old; however a diagnosis is rarely given until later, usually around the ages of th...
...at comes naturally to most people: listening to others, looking them in the eye, and trying to understand another's point of view. Dr. Attwood believes, "Children with Asperger's Syndrome have the strong desire to have friends while recognizing their considerable difficulties with achieving and maintaining genuine friendships. Many experience ridicule, exclusion, teasing or bullying. Education programs can be used to assist them."
Many of the challenges children on the spectrum face, continue to be areas of hardship during adolescence. The transition from childhood to adolescence is a vulnerable and challenging time for typically developing children, but even more so for those with ASD. Bullying and peer-victimization increases during adolescence for these children, as their lack of social skills and close friendships makes them easy targets. According to Fisher and Taylor (2015), out of thirty students with ASD they surveyed, 73 percent had experienced at least one
Along with being the most widespread mental health disorder, women are more likely to be affected by most anxiety disorders than men. Anxiety disorders are often characterized by feelings of worry, uncertainty, anxiety, or fear, which can be so intense, it can interfere with a person’s daily activities. Therefore, it is likely for a person struggling with an anxiety disorder will find themselves unemployed, financially dependent on others and even have poor quality social relationships as well. As an anxiety disorder may affect other functional impairments, it is also important to be aware of its development considering an anxiety response affects various populations and individuals differently.
Many people across the world are unfamiliar with disorders associated with autism. Some people do not even know what autism actually is. Asperger’s Syndrome is one perplexing disorder, of countless, that needs to be acknowledged. Although it is one of the more well-known disorders, an understanding of Asperger’s is far from common knowledge. There is an abundance of misconceptions and people unaware of what Asperger Syndrome actually is. Being uncertain about the characteristics of a person with Asperger’s allows people to go through life not understanding the disorder itself and people who have it.
This paper was reprinted with permission of Susan Moreno on the O.A.S.I.S. (Online Asperger's Syndrome Information and Support)
The Beck Anxiety Inventory was designed by Aaron T. Beck and is self report scale that consists of 21 items. The items are short and straightforward, making it easy to read and comprehend. All items are related to anxiety and describe a symptom of anxiety that is rate on a four point likert scale according to severity. The answers range from 0-3 and the responses range from “not at all” to “severely; I could barely stand it” and all items are added for a total score. The instructions on the test ask for the respondent to “indicate how much you have been bothered by each symptom during the past week, including today, by placing an X in the corresponding space in the column next to each symptom” (Dowd, 2008). The assessment is intended for adolescents and adults and can be administered individually or in a group setting. An additional copy of the inventory test is also available in Spanish. It was originally created from a sample of 810 outpatients of that were predominately affected by mood and anxiety disorders and research on the original development is described as informative and thorough.
Clinical depression goes beyond sadness or having a bad day. It is a form of mental illness that affects the way one feels, thinks, and acts. Depression in children can lead to failure in school, alcohol or other drug abuse and even suicide. The warning signs of depression fall into four different categories: emotional signs, cognitive signs (those involving thinking), physical complaints, and behavioral changes. Depending upon the degree of depression, a child may experience a few symptoms or many. Also, the severity of each symptom may vary. According to the CQ Researcher, "School
Children who suffer from ASD usually have the appearance of normal development and then become withdrawn and regress from social interaction (Melinda Smith, 2013). The impaired social interaction of the disorder affects communication both verbally and non- verbally (Melinda Smith, 2013). Their communication with others and the world around them is also affected, as well as their thinking and behavior (Melinda Smith, 2013).
Until about ten years ago, children’s mood swings and irritability were considered nothing but a phase that kids go through and would eventually outgrow. It has been proven that if depression in teenagers goes unnoticed and, therefore, untreated, the children gradually will turn to doing drugs (“self-medication”) and consuming alcohol, will drop out of school, will become promiscuous, and for a lot of them it even might lead to suicide.
Depression is defined as an illness; the feelings of depression persist and interfere with a child or adolescent’s ability to function. Depression can be a very difficult and painful experience that affects not only the individual suffering from it, but also the people around them. There comes a point in some peoples’ lives where social isolation, low energy, sadness, low self-esteem, and the feeling of hopelessness, cannot be taken anymore. The feelings are so strong and persistent, that the victim becomes severely unhappy, which can then result in depression. Clinical depression has many related symptoms trouble sleeping, eating disorders, withdrawal and inactivity, self-punishment, and loss of pleasure. People that are depressed do not like to do things they may usually like to. However, there are many differences between feeling depressed and actually suffering from depression, the disease. Any person feels depressed at some time or another in their life. They feel worthless, tired and tend to want to be alone without human interaction, this is normal. Depression brings on poor concentration or inability to think and make decisions (Kist 26). Surveys that have been taken that show approximately 20 in 100 people suffer from depression at any one time. About one if four Americans will suffer from a depression over the course of their lifetime. Depression strikes men and women of all ages, in all races, but most studies indicate that women are more often afflicted. Depression comes in many different types: major, manic and dysthymia are a few. A chronic, physical illness, drug habit, death of a loved one; or a problem in a marriage cause major depression. Even though most people with major depression will recover, half will suffer another episode (Hales 38). People with severe cases of major depression can’t work, study, or interact and eventually can’t feed, clothe or clean themselves (Hales 38).Manic depression is a type of depression that goes from a person being extremely happy and then becoming severely depressed (Kist 107). Being in a depressed state can be life threatening. People suffering from manic depression show many symptoms. A few major ones are hyperactivity; talking fast, inability, fear of dying, and jumping from one topic to another during a conversation (Kist 39). Another type is Psychoanalysis. Psychoanaly...
National Institute of Mental Health. (2009). Studying anxiety disorders. NIH Medline plus, 5, 13-15. Retrieved from http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/anxiety-disorders/complete-index.shtml