Why are women depressed the most?

 

The effect of depression is more in women than men. A survey was conducted from 1990 to 2019 to examine the rate of depression in men and women. According to the survey, 4.29 percent of females worldwide had depression in 2019, compared to 2.87 percent of males. So, it is clear that women are more prone to depression than men. But this does not define women as weak or frail. You will see in further discussion that the reason women are more susceptible to depression has nothing to do with the strength and courage of women. It is biological, hormonal, and social factors trigger depression in women.

Photo by Yuris Alhumaydy on Unsplash

Is depression more common in females?

Depression becomes more common for females, mostly, after puberty. It is mentioned in a research article that the depression rate of girls and boys before puberty is the same. There are also results observed that higher depression rate in boys before puberty, not in girls.

Females experience a high range of depression,

• during puberty and after adolescence
• Premenstrual problems
• Pregnancy / Perinatal Depression
• Postpartum depression
• Perimenopause and menopause

Puberty

As most of us know, puberty is the period girls change physically and mentally into adolescence. During this period, girls experience a high range of depression. According to the pharmacy prescription report, in 2019, 10.2% of teenage girls consumed anti-depressed medicine compared to 5.3% of teenage boys.

So, does puberty hormone cause depression?

One of the reasons to become depressed during puberty is the fluctuation of hormones.

• Fluctuation of the hormone causes changes in appearance, probably, a negative body image, pimples, scars, and acne on the face. This change makes girls feel insecure in society and causes depression.
• During puberty, the prefrontal cortex develops, enabling girls to think beyond the limit and set long-term goals, however; when these goals become stressful, it influences depression.
• Hormonal changes during puberty can also cause girls to become extremely emotional, sensitive, and vulnerable to get impacted by sensitive situations, which will cause depression as a result.

But not only hormone change affects depression in puberty; genetics also influence depression during puberty.

• If the mother is a depressed patient, it can impact the child during puberty.
• If the depressed parent negatively treats their child, it can result in depression during and after adolescents.

Early puberty is also a cause of depression.

• when a girl reaches adolescence early, she might seem different from her late-developing peers. She might feel excluded and secluded, and it can cause depression.

Premenstrual problems

Can pre-menstrual cause depression and anxiety?

Probably feeling depressed during the luteal phase of menstruation is feeling,
sad
irritable
anxious
low mood
sleepy
teary

it is not severe as PMDD, but hormone fluctuation a week before periods creates phases of mood disorders. It is probably due to a low level of serotonin level.

Perinatal Depression and Postpartum Depression

Photo by Jenna Norman on Unsplash

Is perinatal and postpartum the same?

Perinatal depression-depression occurs during pregnancy.

What are the causes?

• Genetics-family history of mental disorders or if she has experienced perinatal depression during previous pregnancies.
• hormone fluctuation
• psychological vulnerability-fear of childbirth
  uncertainty
  anxiety
  low self-esteem
  discomfort
  loss
  unable to accept the new change in life
  complication
• life stressors-lack of social support
  lower income
  forced pregnancy
  poor relationship
  complication during pregnancy
  low education level

Postpartum depression starts after childbirth and; lasts for more than two weeks. This depression can lead to MDD (Major depressive disorder).

The causes:

• fear about the child’s health and safety
• traumatic birth experience
• breast-feeding problems
• preterm birth
• lack of support during pregnancy

Postpartum depression occurs commonly in every mother. But it needs to be treated because it can affect negatively, especially if it is a girl during adolescents.

Perimenopause and menopause

Can perimenopause cause depression?

Perimenopause is the phase leading to menopause. Perimenopause occurs ten years early. During this stage, many women develop depressive signs. The causes could be due to

• genetics-if a woman has a history of depression, for instance, if she had got depression during her adolescents, pregnancy, and postpartum, then there is no doubt she will experience depression during Perimenopause.
• Sensitive to the fluctuation of hormones
• poor health
• Negative feelings about aging and menopause
• insomnia/sleep apnea
• relationship problems
• the severity of vasomotor symptoms
• low income
• lack of social support

Both Perimenopause and Menopause have similar causes for depression.
But during menopause VMS, vaginal dryness, sleep disorder, and sexual difficulties can worsen depression.

Photo by Dan Meyers on Unsplash

So, the message to men is women are not intentionally being depressed. It is the natural aspects which infuse them to feel down.
Your support for women matters.