Riestenberg 1

Morgan Riestenberg

Prof. Johnson

English 1102-K01

16 March 2021

What is the major cause of depression in teens?

Depression is an issue affecting many teenagers. There are many causes of depression.

Many causes aren’t preventable and some are hard to detect. Depression has many symptoms

like lasting feelings of sadness, sleeping problems, and changes in appetite but it is mostly losing

interest in things you used to enjoy and not knowing why. A lot of teens also go undiagnosed.

Self-esteem, parental death, family member with depression and having other mental

illnesses are very common causes of depression. Kids whose parents die of a violent death have a

higher rate of psychiatric disorders like depression. Children and teens also have an increased

risk of psychiatric disorders during the first couple of years after their parent’s death (Berg).

Losing a parent before school age was linked to higher rated of being hospitalized for depression

compared to losing a parent as a teenager. Losing someone as an adult is bad but losing a parent

as a child is much worse because they don’t know how to deal with the death as well as an adult.

Depression is rising especially in girls. In grades eight to nine, lower self-esteem was

predicted with higher depression symptoms and grades seven to eight higher depression

symptoms lead to lower self-esteem (Psypost). Girls and boys have similar levels of depression

and self-esteem at twelve years old. Girls depression symptoms increased a lot and their self-

esteem decreased at age thirteen. This is the age most people start middle school and where dress

code gets enforced more and becomes vaguer. Self-esteem and self-criticism are the biggest

causes linked with depression with the testing done in this article.
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There is no single cause for depression. Many different factors play a role. A family

member with depression, stress, loss of a relationship, chronic illness, and learning disorders are

causes of depression (Rochester). Anxiety disorders and other mental illnesses are also a big

cause of depression. A lot of the symptoms of anxiety overlap with depression, so it might lead

to teenagers being misdiagnosed.

Depression is hereditary. People with a relative that has depression are almost three times

more likely to have depression than those that don’t have a family member with it. Hormones are

also associated with depression and the hormonal changes that happen during puberty likely

influence depression in teens (Parks). Physical and emotional abuse, as well as neglect can

change the brain’s chemistry and increase the likely hood of developing mental illnesses like

depression. Teens are under a lot of pressure. The pressure can become overwhelming and can

cause teenagers to be more prone to depression.

Depression can be linked to learning to feel helpless. People who have witnessed or

experienced violence are more likely to get depression. Being a part of the LGBTQ+ community

in an unsupportive household, or having a chronic physical illness also increases the likely hood

of having depression (Mayo). Being overly dependent, pessimistic, or being self-critical can also

increase the likely hood of having depression.

To summarize, there are many factors that contribute to depression. There isn’t an exact

cause that is able to be pin pointed. Some factors can be low self-esteem, parental death, family

member with depression and having other mental illnesses. Depression isn’t just for adults its

very common in teenagers.

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Works Cited

Berg, Lisa, et al. “Parental Death during Childhood and Depression in Young Adults - a National

Cohort Study.” Journal of Child Psychology & Psychiatry, vol. 57, no. 9, Sept. 2016, pp.

1092–1098. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1111/jcpp.12560. Accessed 7 March 2021

“Longitudinal Study Sheds Light on the Complicated Relationship between Self-Esteem and

Depression in Early Adolescence.” PsyPost, 22 Feb. 2021,

www.psypost.org/2021/02/longitudinal-study-sheds-light-on-the-complicated-

relationship-between-self-esteem-and-depression-in-early-adolescence-59748. Accessed

7 March 2021

“Major Depression in Teens.” Major Depression in Teens - Health Encyclopedia - University of

Rochester Medical Center, www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx?

contenttypeid=90&contentid=P01614.Newspaper Accessed 7 March 2021

Parks, Peggy J. Teen Depression. Lucent Books, 2013. Accessed 7 March 2021

“Teen Depression.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 16

Nov. 2018, www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/teen-depression/symptoms-

causes/syc-20350985#:~:text=Many factors increase the risk,as physical or sexual abuse.

Accessed 7 March 2021