Depression as a Physiological Disorder When researching the above statement, I have taken into account what I consider to be some of the main physiological and biological arguments regarding depression as a physical illness, as well as several psychodynamic and behavioural theories in order to attempt to compare the two and result in understanding how true the above statement is. When looking at the physiological view, it can be useful to look at the biological explanation that depression is caused by a disturbance of hormones and brain chemistry. The Endocrine system can seriously affect the behaviours of a person. This system produces hormones that have an effect on many behaviours such as sleep, menstruation and growth. Many conditions that are similar to depression or where depression is one of the main symptoms have been linked to hormonal changes and fluctuations. For example, when looking at Postpartum Depression (PPD) we know that both pregnancy and birth cause massive hormonal changes. 20% of women are reported feeling moderately depressed during this time; few of these then became chronically depressed. In support of this, it has been discovered that the stress hormone ‘Cortisol’ is very low after giving birth, which could make coping more difficult, leading to depression. It cannot be denied however that many of the women who suffer seriously from PPD have already had episodes of clinical depression in their life, which could mean that they are more prone to suffering depression at this point. It could also be that psychological factors are important – many women may have been seen to have unrealistic views of motherhood ... ... middle of paper ... ...applies to one applies to the other. The negative aspects of the physiological theories are also present however, many hormonal changes may not be necessary because of the depression suffered, but could be an effect of the illness. In conclusion, it would appear that depression is a physiological illness to a degree, whether caused by outside factors such as loss or trauma or by genetics, some hormone levels do seem to fluctuate causing the mood in a person to change and therefore depression is often treated with medication. Bibliography Cardwell (M) et al (2000) ‘Psychology for A Level’ London: HarperCollins Publishers Eysench (M) & Flanagan (C) (2002) ‘Psychology for AS Level’ Sussex: Psychology Press Ltd Gross (R) et al (2004) ‘Psychology a new Introduction’ Kent@ Greenbridge Publishing Services
Through my extensive research on depression I have learned a lot of new things. I have learned about the many forms of depression and treatment for depression. I have also learned a little about what is believed to go on chemically in the brain of a clinically depressed person. I was also able to partially determine what sort of role genetics, chemicals and personal influences in the brain. Though I was unable to determine exactly how environmental and personal stress can cause a chemical imbalance in a person, I was even able to speculate about this issue and determine some theories of my own on why and how this may happen.
Depression is an illness within itself that affects the “whole body”. (Staywell,1998) The body, feelings, thoughts, and behavior are all immensely altered when someone is depressed. It is not a sign of personal weakness, or a condition that can be wished or willed away. For some people depression is just temporary, but for others it can last for weeks, months and even years.
Depression is considered a mental disorder that can lead an individual to commit suicide, experiment fatal risk that can injure his or her life. Furthermore, an individual feeling depressed lacks motivation to do anything progressive with his or her life. With that said, these individuals sometime gives up interest in activities that were once enjoyable, gets in a phase were he or she loses appetite, begins to overeat, loses concentration on what he or she is trying to complete, and becomes indecisiveness. Moreover, depression is a condition that makes an individual feel miserable, have no motivation to any activity that can influence his or her views, actions, welfare. Furthermore, depressed individuals at times may feel sad, apprehensive, desperate, destitute, useless, awkward, short-tempered, and agitated. In addition, the melancholy of depression is categorized by a greater concentration and length that is attached to severe symptoms. According to Wedding & Corsini (2014) states, “Physical disease, severe and acute stress, and chronic stress area also precipitating factors” (Pp. 240) of an individu...
Depression: Cause or Effect? Depression supplies a distinct depiction of the brain, equals behavior theory. The physiological characteristics that taint the diseased brain directly impact the thoughts and behaviors of the millions of sufferers. The genesis of this dehabilitating problem is both mysterious and complicated, and I am not offering any sort of revelation in stating that it is a multi-factorial manifestation involving both biological and environmental components.
Depression is a complicated process as it seems be the effect of more than one process. There are many theories surrounding the biological side of depression, however the two prominent ones have developed many studies and encouraged many debates for its cause. The monoamine hypothesis and the neurotropic hypothesis are both different theories concerning the cause of depression, however both holds strong evidence, and when studied further, leads to the possibility of overlap and linkage between the two.
Depression is a condition of general emotion dejection and withdrawal; sadness greater and more prolonged than that warranted by any objective reason. The gene for depression can be inherited and passed down the family tree, as well as can come about for reasons unrelated to genes such as psychological or physical factors. If someone has a parent or sibling with depression, the risk of developing depression compared with the average person is 20-30% higher. However, it is not equally manifested in each member that has depression. For some it may manifest itself as intolerance, and for others as sadness or loneliness and can include frequent mood swings.
Depression is sometimes mistaken as the typical sad feeling all humans get once in a while. However, the distinct difference between depression and those typical sad feelings are that depression is long-term whereas feeling sad is short-term. Depression is a mental illness that should be taken seriously as this illness can affect the individual emotionally and physically, and impair the daily life. So what is it that causes depression? This is the big question psychologists try to answer through research but their explanations do not explain how those who face one of those factors, only a few are able to avoid developing depression. Everyone thinks and behaves differently, but there are specific personal factors such as one’s negative personalities, chronic illnesses, and substance abuse that causes each individual to respond in a similar and certain way, thus causing them to be prone to developing a depressive disorder. Low self-esteem and negative personality styles can cause depression due to its negative influences on the individual’s mind. Chronic illnesses triggers depression due to its biological and psychological effects. Lastly, substance abuse affects an individual’s mood, personal life, and health causing vulnerability to developing depression.
Postpartum depression is indeed a major psychological disorder that can affect the relationship between mother and baby. At this time, the cause of postpartum depression is unidentified, although several factors experienced during pregnancy can contribute to this disorder. Fluctuating hormone levels have been traditionally blamed for the onset of postpartum depression. Jennifer Marie Camp (2013), a registered nurse with a personal history of postpartum depression, states in the Intentional Journal of Childbirth Education that “current research demonstrates that PPD may be a compilation of numerous stressors encountered by the family, including biochemical, genetic, psychosocial factors and everyday life stress” (Camp, 2013, p. 1). A previous history of depression, depression during pregnancy, financial difficulties, a dif...
are happy when they achieve something or saddened when they fail a test or lose
In the early times, depression was called as melancholia. According to the American Psychiatric Association, there was no definition of depression back in the 18th century, not even in The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), until 1880. Humans are not robots, we have emotions. Sometimes we feel sad or blues for a short-period of time and it is normal. However, people who have depression, may suffer from it for a longer time. Many people do not take depression seriously and do not think treatments are necessary. The truth is depression is a serious illness, it can cause suicides if the patients were not being treated properly. This research paper considers
Depression is a psychological disease. It is one of the most common mental illnesses (Blais, et al., 2013). Depression was known since antiquity. Hippocrates diagnosed it in fourth century BC (McNamara and Horan, 1986). After World War II, depression was described as “aggression turned inward” (McNamara & Horan, 1986). Now there is Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, which is designed to evaluate how severe is depression (Gibbons et al., 2012).
Depression is defined as "a state of despondency marked by feelings of powerlessness and hopelessness" (Coon, 2001). Some people can mix up depression with just having the blues because of a couple of bad days or even weeks. It is already said that depression affects about one sixth of the population or more (Doris, Ebmeier, Shajahan, 1999). Depression can happen in any age range from birth to death. The cause of depression is still obscure and becoming clear that a number of diverse factors are likely to be implicated, both genetic and environmental. Some causes are leading stressful lives, genetic factors, a previous depressive episode, and the personality trait neuroticism (Doris, et al., 1999).
Depression is a serious mental health illness which affects an individuals’ mind, body and mood. It is a chronic and lifelong health condition (NICE, 2006) thought to be caused by a number of biological factors including neurotransmitter disturbances in the brain and an element of genetic vulnerability; these are often in addition to psychosocial factors such as the occurrence of undesirable life events, limited social network options, poor self esteem and the occurrence of any adverse life events during a persons’ lifetime (Bernstein, 2006). Depression can have an impact on a persons’ ability to do many things including working, engaging with others, participating fully in family life or maintaining relationships, and it can also impact on a person...
What is depression? Depression is the feelings of gloominess, sadness, dejection, being alone in the world, hopelessness, worthlessness, etc. Originally this was called Melancholia.
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...