Types of Depression
II
Depression in Women
II Depression in Men
II
Childhood Depression
II
Adolescent Depression
II
Depression in the Elderly
II
Clinical Depression
II
Major Depression
II
Dysthymia II
Atypical Depression
II
Bipolar Depression
II
Cyclothymia II
Seasonal Affective Disorder
II
Postpartum Depression (PPD)
II
Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder
(PMDD)
II
Holiday Depression II
Workplace Depression.
Depression and the Woman.
According to researchers, more than 17 million people in the
United States deal with depression every year. Up to two-thirds of
those of those people are women. The reported rates of depression
are twice as high for a woman as they are for men. A woman may
experience the symptoms of depression earlier and the symptoms of
depression for a woman are usually more severe and last longer.
There are many reasons why the depression rates are higher for a
woman. First, a woman is more likely than a man to admit she is
suffering with depression. A woman, in general, will tend to be
open about her emotions and feelings. Because a woman is often
more open to reporting her depression to a physician or
psychologist, experts know more about woman depression. The fact
that a woman reports her depression may also contribute to gender
differences in depression data.
A woman is more likely to deal with depression because of social
factors, according to experts. A woman is twice as likely to deal
with physical and sexual abuse, domestic violence, poverty and the
strains of single parenthood, which increases the risk of woman
depression. In fact researchers say sexual and physical abuse is
linked with woman depression as one study found three out of five
women with depressive illnesses were sexual abuse survivors.
Data from a recent National Institutes
of Mental Health also indicates life stress as playing a key role
in depression for a woman.
Experts believe psychological factors such as increased workload,
family responsibilities and sexual discrimination contribute to
woman depression. When researchers studied depression among Amish
people and college students, they found no gender difference in
the rates of depression. The research on woman depression
indicated there might be fewer incidents of depression when a
woman has more social equality.
Other factors that contribute to woman depression include
hormonal, genetic, biological and reproductive issues. Evidence of
depression in a woman often can be found during the female
reproductive years. A woman experiences depression oftentimes
before menstruation, after and during pregnancy as well as after
menopause. According to researchers who looked at the depression
associated with premenstrual syndrome, hormones affect woman
depression.
A woman experiencing clinical depression may or may not also have
premenstrual dysphoric disorder. One way your physician will be
able to tell if you are dealing with depression or premenstrual
syndrome is by noting whether or not your symptoms occur
throughout the month or just 10 days to 2 weeks prior to
menstruation.
A woman may experience depression during the time before her
period as well as a result of infertility, miscarriage, and
menopause. A woman is also at higher risk for depression if she is
taking oral contraceptives. A woman who is in her childbearing
years should pay attention to symptoms of depression as she is at
high risk.
A woman is much more likely to be depressed while also suffering
with an eating disorder, stress or anxiety. A woman with
depression may find her entire life is affected. Woman depression
affects work, personal life, hobbies, sexuality and physical
activities.
If you are a woman suffering with
depression, you may want to keep track of your symptoms. Log your
feelings and what was happening at the time when you felt like
sleeping all day, binging, crying or skipping work or essential
chores.
The gender gap that makes a woman more vulnerable to depression
than a man may lie in several social, psychological, genetic and
biological factors. At the same time, experts know men and women
have about the same rate of bipolar disorder yet major depression
and dysthymia affect twice as many women as men regardless of
racial and ethnic background or economic status. However, unlike
men, a woman with depression is not as likely to handle the
problem by drinking, taking drugs, becoming violent or antisocial.
