Chelsey Hood, Nikki Farrington ENC 3331 04/05/13 An Analysis of Depression Found in College Situations: Draft Depression in college

situations stems from many different causes. It often starts with small issues such as being away from home for the first time, a lack of friends and the loneliness that comes with it, as well as missing family and friends from back home. From there, the problem can grow larger with the addition of problems such as finances, the amount of difficult school work given, and an indefinite raise in the amount of anxiety a student faces. Through these reasons, its easy to see why nearly thirty percent of college students reported that they felt so depressed that it was difficult to function at some time throughout that year (NIMH, 2). Depression symptoms include not just feeling sad, but can also include emotions such as hopelessness, guilt, or anxiety. It can be a result of family history or it can be situational. Depression is known to exist because of genetics, stress (often times due to laziness in a college setting), and even the possibility of feeling unaccomplished. Its considered a mental disorder that cannot be cured, but it can be repressed with medication and time. There are several different forms of depression ranging from major depression to seasonal depression disorder found only in the winter months. The main thing that many people do not understand is that depression is a disorder and that not everyone has it. The difference between everyday misery and depression is that depression persists beyond a couple of weeks and begins to seep into a variety of social, mental and physical functions (Leibow, 116). To put it in simpler terms, depression is as

if youve been rubbing salt in the wound that is sadness, so that your mental state goes from just feeling bad to feeling as if youre worthless. There is a difference, but many people are not aware of that difference. A few solutions that have risen recently deal with psychiatric help and medication, counseling centers, student help centers at colleges, and even suicide hotlines. Doctor Paul A. Grayson and Doctor Stewart Cooper have stated that, Many college therapy students dont fit snugly into any categories, thus they may warrant dual or multiple diagnoses (Grayson, Meilman, 113). Because of this reason, it may end up that the student is treated the wrong way, causing one problem to stem from another. That may lead to the student going back to the therapist, and being re-diagnosed. This can make students feel as though things never get better, or they just become confused or irritated. To refer back to the first paragraph, depression and anxiety go hand in hand and can often cause each other to become worse, to the point that it might be hard to tell one apart from another. Due to this reason, depression may seem sensible to some people, as if they deserve to feel depressed (Leibow, 117). Maybe a student is failing a class, has disappointed a professor, is no longer exercising or eating sensibly, or even offending a best friend can force depression and anxiety to intermingle. Because they become so alike, students will not seek help because they think their appropriately small anxiety isnt as bad as something as large as depression. When I, Chelsey, was a senior in high school I began to show some signs of depression. I had been to counseling numerous times, but my mom decided to send me to a psychiatrist, someone who could define my illness and prescribe something to correct

it. We then found out that I am manic depressive, which runs in my family. I currently go to psychiatry every other month and am going to be on medication for the rest of my life. Although psychiatry has helped me in a medical way, I was never able to connect with doctors because I feel as though they have always been too focused on the situation of my depression, rather than me as a person. The question was always Am I prescribing the right dosage of the right medicine, as opposed to what advice can I give her to carry on her daily activities? Although psychiatry and counseling have been highly helpful to ease my depression as a medical tool, and I am in no way discounting their ability to ease depression in a medical sense, they never quite helped me to feel less alone in my depression. In fact, on a regular basis I am frustrated by the medical system because of how often I am required to meet with a doctor to say Im doing fine and yes, the medicine is still working. Many people begin to believe that they are not depressed after being on medication because it makes them feel better, which causes them to deny psychiatric help and stop seeking it. It would be nice to have a place where people who suffer from this and similar disorders could talk to each other during depressive states and convince each other to keep up the fight. While it is nice to have someone who is there to prescribe medications that ease depression, one must note that Its worth looking for a therapist who has the maturity, confidence, and insight to recognize and treat the actual problem, rather than a therapist who does what she does regardless. (Leibow, 112. Emphasis added.) That being said, Psychiatrists use two main rhetorical approaches in diagnosing and aiding patients, the first being identification vs. division. Here, the doctor is trying to identify with the patient, which may or may not succeed. This depends on how the patient

feels around the doctor, and how they react to what he or she says to them. If this is not successful, the doctor ends up diving themself from the patient. In some cases, the patient does not want to connect with the doctor. This may simply be because he or she feels uncomfortable in the professional setting. What were trying to achieve in Letters of Understanding is to fill this gap, so that the when patient cant identify with the doctor, they might have a better chance of identifying with someone of their own age who is experiencing or has experienced a similar situation. Were not trying to diagnose depression. Our mission is to give students a place to talk, where they can feel safe and comfortable. Were not trying to take away from psychiatry and counseling. We are simply trying to add another solution that might act as a supplement, or a different way to approach the problem of not talking openly to the doctor, as opposed to just medical diagnosis and prescriptions of psychiatric drugs. It is known that some students may not even approach the subject of doctor prescribed drugs because they think, If I dont take medicine, then my condition isnt medical. And if it isnt medical, then it isnt very serious (Leibow, 114). While this is not always true, therapy may not be what everyone needs, especially for those who truly believe they arent suffering from a medical illness. Our site isnt a cure for depression, seeing as there really isnt one, but it gives students a place to talk when theyre feeling lonely or when they just need someone to confide in, because loneliness is a huge part of depression. To continue, psychiatrists use highly heuristic methods as a second rhetorical approach to communication with patients. The reason being is that they use previous experiences to make decisions about the present and this could fail because the use of

precedent doesnt always work. Sometimes we need to differentiate this case from the previous one. To conclude, we found that depression doesnt stem from just one problem, but a vast amount of problems. Sometimes doctors arent the only solution, but remain valuable when the student needs to know for sure if they do or do not have depression. Letters of Understanding would be a supplement for the lack of connection between doctor and patient, acting as an emotional outlet, not a replacement of psychiatrics.

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), . "Depression and College Students." National Institute of Mental Health. NIH Publication, 22 Feb 2013. Web. 2 Apr 2013. <http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/depression-and-collegestudents/complete-index.shtml Leibow, David. What To Do When College Is Not the Best Time of Your Life. New York: Colombia University Press, 2010. 107-121. Print. Grayson, Paul A. , and Philip W. Meilman. College Mental Health Practice. New York: Taylor & Francis Group, LLC, 2006. 113-134. Print.