Depression, anxiety and other forms of mental illness have taken over from unemployment as the greatest social problem in the UK. Yet only 4% of the 15% of the population who suffer from depression and anxiety disorders received psychological therapy in the past year. One in ten young people under 16 has a mental health disorder and 40,000 children and adolescents in the UK take some form of anti-depressants. This books looks at the many forms that depression can take, especially amongst younger people. Chapter two examines the types of help that are available.
The information comes from a wide variety of sources and includes government reports and statistics, newspaper reports, features, magazine articles and surveys and literature from lobby groups and charitable organisations.
Table of Contents
Chapter One: Depression
Depression, Terms you might hear, Depression and physical illness, Are you at risk for depression?, Depression is UK’s biggest social problem, Teenage depression, Depression and underage drinking, Ecstasy and depression, Depression and suicide, New reports link mental ill-health to changing diets, Men and depression, Statistics on mental health, Post-natal depression, Feeling SAD?, Manic depression, Myths and misconceptions about depression, Depression in the elderly.
Chapter Two: Treating Depression
Treating depression, Pills ‘are not best way to treat child depression’, Tips on depression and anxiety in children, Introduction to talking therapies, End of the ‘prozac nation’, Quick guide to antidepressants, Psychotherapy for all?, Electroconvulsive therapy, Responding to depression, Cheers?, The lowdown: seasonal affective disorder (SAD), Quick-fix tips for depression.
Key Facts
Additional Resources
Index
Acknowledgements
• Around 15% of the population suffers from depression or anxiety. (page 7)
• More than a million children are suffering in an epidemic of depression and anxiety, a report has revealed. (page 9)
• A Mixmag magazine survey found that regular ecstasy users are 25% more likely to suffer a mental health disorder than the rest of the population and were twice as likely to have seen a doctor about mental health issues, with half of those being concerned about depression. (page 10)
• Depression is most common in people aged 25 to 44 years. (page 16)
• Depression affects all people in all cultures across the world. However, in some countries ‘sadness’, particularly in old age, is considered ‘normal’ and not a disease to be treated by a doctor. (page 21)
• Depression is the most common mental illness found in old people and the second commonest single underlying cause for all GP consultations for people over 70 years of age. (page 22)
• Only a quarter of those who are ill with depression or anxiety are receiving any treatment – in most cases medication. (page 33)
Understanding Depression Study Guide
Each book in the Issues series has a study guide. These four-page guides provide a variety of discussion points and other activities to suit a wide range of ability levels and interests.
Publisher: Independence Educational Publishers
Price: £1.50
ISBN: 978 1 86168 383 0
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