Teen Depression Problem Solution Essay free essay sample

In fact, â€Å"11% of adolescents have a depressive disorder by age 18,† according to the National Institute of Mental Health’s website. This statistic may not seem like a lot, but it means that 11% of teens have a serious problem; they feel like this frequently, yet still go on, in most cases without treatment. Although feeling depressed happens to everybody, according to Medical News Today, most people don’t get it as badly as these 11% do, and also not as often. But if you’ve ever experienced this feeling, imagine it happening all the time or reoccurring at unpredictable intervals. Also, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s website, â€Å"Depression rates triple between the ages of 12 and 15 (from 5. 1% to 15. 2%). † This shows the massive increase in depression among teens, but so what? Well, this disorder changes people’s lives, and sometimes it even ends them. According to Suicide. org, â€Å"Over 90 percent of people who die by suicide have a mental illness at the time of their death. We will write a custom essay sample on Teen Depression Problem Solution Essay or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page And the most common mental illness is depression. † Imagine teens ending their lives, because of a disease many people don’t even recognize as a disease. Many others tell them, â€Å"Snap out of it! †, but those people have no idea how crushing and consuming the feelings can be. Too many people are uneducated, and this can lead to worsened effects of depression. Another lasting effect of depression that not many people know about is bipolar disease. â€Å"15% of teens with depression eventually develop bipolar disorder,† says Teenhelp. com. Again, this disease affects people’s lives, not only the victims, but the people surrounding them too. Family and friends can be affected greatly by having a depressed sibling or friend. According to Helpguide. rg, â€Å"If someone you love is depressed, you may be experiencing any number of difficult emotions, including helplessness, frustration, anger, fear, guilt, and sadness. These feelings are all normal. It’s not easy dealing with a friend or family member’s depression. And if you don’t take care of yourself, it can become overwhelming. † With the number of depressed people so high, imagine the number of people that are close to those with the disease; those people are suffering as well. All in all, this disease is terribly effective at changing peoples lives for the worse, and we need to help solve it. Three possible solutions for controlling and preventing depression are reducing pressure on teens, making sure people get a proper night’s sleep, and exercising. One way to help prevent and/ or cure depression is to reduce the amount of pressure put on teens. Many adults might think teens just complain too much, or that they’re exaggerating about how much work they have and how stressed they are, but Media. swarthmore. edu disagrees. â€Å"Early adolescents deal with a number of physical, cognitive, social and environmental change that often occur together and may increase their risk for a variety of difficulties, including†¦ depression. Like I said before, depression rates triple between the ages 12 and 15, which could very possibly be due to the enormous amounts of pressure put on teens. Sadly, many people are unaware of this, and dismiss behavior as â€Å"moody teen syndrome† or something of the sort. However, these signs are vital to early diagnosis, wh ich could end up saving a teen’s life. If there was less pressure put on teens however, maybe suicide from depression wouldn’t be the 3rd leading cause of death among teens. Healthyconsumer. com also says that, â€Å"Teenagers are under an enormous amount of pressure. Expectations are very high in many aspects of their lives, and to live up to those expectations, they occasionally must sacrifice doing things they want to do for things that have to do. † This could be another main contributor to depression. If you look at little kids playing, they’re laughing and happy, because they’re doing what they love, but if you look at teens and adults, you rarely see them playing. If you ask a teenager why they aren’t playing, they’ll usually grumble, â€Å"I don’t have time, I have too much homework. † Homework usually starts picking up around 6th or 7th grade; depression rates triple between the ages of 12 and 15. Maybe if teens were less stressed with homework and such, they could do more things they enjoy, and maybe they’d be less depressed. A second way to help prevent and/ or cure this crippling disease is to ensure people get a proper night’s sleep. Don’t you love the feeling after a long, relaxing, refreshing night’s sleep? You might be thinking, â€Å"Sure, but how does that help with depression? † Well, Chris Iliades, MD says that, â€Å"Teens whose parents set a 10 p. m bedtime (and enforce it) are 25% less likely to experience teenage depression†¦ according to a study of data from 15,000 adolescents. The potential benefits of this solution could be huge; being able to cure the crushing effects of depression by sleeping seems like a simple and easy thing to do, yet how simple is it? With all of the work students are assigned, this takes us back to the issue of too much pressure on teens. However, if we were able to conquer that, and teachers st arted assigning less work, imagine what a liberating and positive effect it would have on teens! Also, sleep can be an alternative to more serious treatments for depression, for people who aren’t ready to take that step, according to longevity. bout. com. â€Å"Sleep impacts many of the chemicals in your body, including serotonin. People with a deficiency in serotonin are more likely to suffer from depression. You can help prevent depression by making sure you are getting the right amount of sleep, between 7 and 9 hours each night. † Like it says here, sleep is one of the body’s natural antidepressants. If teens were able to get 7-9 hours of sleep each night, it could possibly reduce depression, and all of the negative side-effects that come with it by up to 50%! This could change many teens’ current situations, and lead to them living happier, less stressful, more fulfilling lives. A third way to help prevent and/ or cure depression is to exercise more. Everyone knows that exercise is god for you, but can it really help cure depression? In fact, it can, according to web. md. com. They say that, â€Å"When you exercise, your body releases chemicals called endorphins. These chemicals interact with the receptors in your brain that reduce your perception of pain. Endorphins also trigger a positive feeling in the body, similar to that of morphine. Like sleep, exercise is one of your body’s natural antidepressants, and is much cheaper and easier to obtain than prescription antidepressants. Also, exercise is something many people enjoy, and can be fun depending on what you do. Imagine the benefits of doing something fun that you enjoy, plus the rewards of the endorphins being released into your body! Many people are probably skeptica l that something as simple as exercise can be as beneficial as something mixed up in a lab, specifically targeted to fix depression, but Gerard Sanacova, MD and PhD, disagrees. He says that, â€Å"A 2009 analysis found that exercise lightens depression as well as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) or antidepressants. † Not only is exercise as effective as CBT or antidepressants, it’s also easier to access, and safer for teens. In addition, exercise can be put into place in schools, which could help solve and even prevent depression is adolescents, opposed to giving everyone antidepressants, which would be very difficult, expensive, and unsafe. It’s also a lot less scary and committal than antidepressants, especially for a teen who doesn’t want too many people finding out about their condition. There are also all of the other wonderful benefits of exercise to consider, in addition to its anti-depressive qualities. It’s a win-win situation! As you can see, depression is a horrible, and serious problem among teens everywhere today, and it needs to be addressed. Three ways to solve this horrendous disease are to reduce the crushing pressure put on teens these days, raise people’s serotonin levels by getting a 7-9 hour-long night’s sleep, and raise endorphin levels by getting out and exercising. All of these solutions have been proven to help, but other options include CBT, antidepressants, and therapy. If you or a loved one are wrestling with the crippling effects of depression, seek help, and educate yourselves about what you can do to defeat this horrible ailment. Just remember, you’re not worthless. You can always do something to right those lingering wrongs. Everyone is good at something. There’s always somebody who loves you. You’re definitely not alone, and most importantly, never give up.