Stress is known to be one of the major causal factors of depression (Kendler, Karkowski, & Prescott, 1999). Large stressors in life, such as divorce or death in the family, are all known to be related to the development of depression in people (Kendler et al., 1999). Such traumatic, sudden events can place acute stress on a person that can lead to problems such as depression. However, equally as stressful to people is chronic stress - not as stressful as major stressors, but still pervasive enough day-to-day to contribute to an overall drop in positive affect. Although depression is often referred to as the “common cold” of psychology, it can still be a dangerous condition, particularly due to the increase of suicidal ideation that can occur in some people with depression. For this reason, research is constantly seeking to understand the condition better. Since much truly experimental research on humans with depression would constitute a breach of ethics, most research in this area focuses on animals. The study conducted by Henningson et al. that is the subject of this paper utilized rats to study the effects of depression due to chronic stress on cognitive performance.
As it is impossible for rats to indicate in the same way as humans that they are depressed, a model to mimic the development and progression was developed by researchers in the 1980s. Called the chronic mild stress model (CMS model), rats or mice are exposed to mild stressors for a number of weeks (anywhere from one to seven) and their intake of a particular sucrose solution is monitored. Decrease in sucrose consumption or preference is thought to reflect a decrease in sensitivity for rewards (Willner, 2005), a classic example of anhedonia, which is a common symp...
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...ion: Relation to anhedonic-like responses. Behavioural Brain Research, 198 (1), 136-141.
Kendler, K.S., Karkowski, L.M., & Prescott, C.A. (1999). Causal relationship between stressful life events and the onset of major depression. Journal of American Psychiatry, 156 (6), 837-841.
Nestler, E.J., Gould, E., Manj, H., Buncan, M., Dunman, R.S., Greshenfeld, H.K., et al. (2003) Preclinical models: Status of basic research in depression. Biological Psychiatry, 52 (6), 503-528.
Papp, M., Willner, P., & Muscat, R. (1991). An animal model of anhedonia: Attenuation of sucrose consumption and place preference conditioning by chronic unpredictable mild stress. Psychopharmacology, 104 (3), 255-259.
Willner, P. (2005). Chronic mild stress (CMS) revisited: Consistency and behavioural neuro-biological concordance in the effects of CMS. Neuropsychobiology, 52 (1), 90-110.
ABSTRACT Scientific literature is replete with studies examining the relationship between stressful life events and the occurrence of compromised immune function as suggested by the presence of various illnesses. Forty college students answered questionnaires regarding the presence of stressful life events and the presence or absence of recent illnesses. The relationship between these scores was examined. Life stress scores were significantly positively related to scores indicating illnesses on a health inventory. As scores indicating the presence of stressful life experiences increased, scores suggesting the presence of illness also increased.
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.
Katon, W., and Sullivan, M. D., (1990) Depression and Chronic Mental Illness. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, v.51. pgs. 8-19
Clinical depression, which affects about 10% of the adult population (Holtz, Stokes, 1138), is charact...
Williamson, J. S. (2008). Depression. Phi Kappa Phi Forum, 88(1), 18-18, 24. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.library.capella.edu/docview/235187495?accountid=27965
Although historically depression has been considered a character condition, evidence has accumulated suggesting the role of a biological substrate, namely serotonin, in subgroups of depressed patients. This accumulated evidence supports the indoleamine hypothesis of depression, which suggests that major depression results from a deficiency of available serotonin or inefficient serotonin. (16). We see that depletions of serotonin from certain regions of the brain such as the hypothalamus, amygdala, and cortical areas involved in cognition and other high processes, can have a great impact in contributing to depression.
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.
Campbell, F., Singer, G., & Schofield, P. (1983). Stress and Illness. Stress, drugs and health: recent brain-behaviour research (p. 32). Sydney: Pergamon Press.
Many times, depression is associated with thinking patterns, stress, experiences of failure and loss (Meyers, 2014, p. 520). People with depression disorder have various signs and symptoms. You may feel persistent anxiety and hopelessness; loss of interest in activities that you once enjoyed; have difficulty sleeping and concentrating, and even think of suicide. “In any given year, 5.8 percent of men and 9.5 percent of women will have a depressive episode” (Meyers, 2014, p. 520). It is clear that depression is a common and serious
Beck, Aaron T., M D, and Brad A. Alford. Depression: Causes and Treatment. N.p.: University of Pennsylvania, 2009. Print.
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).
Rupke, S., Blecke, D., & Renfrow, M. (2006, January 1). Cognitive therapy for depression. National Center for Biotechnology Information. Retrieved March 10, 2014, from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16417069?dopt=Abstract
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...
Burton, Neel. "The Anatomy of Melancholy: Can Depression Be Good for You?" Lecture. TEDx. Narodni Dom, Maribor. 12 Nov. 2013. Youtube. 2 Mar. 2012. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.
There is something that everyone in this world tends to encounter; stress is that thing. For most people stress is an everyday thing. For others it can be just an occurrence from time to time. It can also affect our personal relationships without even us realizing that it was the main issue. Stress is “a person’s response to events that are threatening or challenging” (Feldman, 2010). Since there are many different type of stressors, they can be places in different categories. Stressors can be categorized as cataclysmic events, personal stressors, or even as background stressors (“daily hassles”). Though no matter what type of stress one has, there is always a way to cope to get through it and keep it from harming our relationships. Even if it is an everyday occurrence or a once in a while occurrence.