Depression looks different in men...anger, risk taking

[dwolen]

Here is a link to an article about research on depression in men. It looks different, but the characteristics are not included in depression symptoms check lists. Anger, risky behavior, bullying. When those symptoms are included, the incidence of depression is higher or equal in men compared to women.
Here is the link:

www.latimes.com/science/la-sci-depression-men-20130829,0,2605342.story

[healthy11]

The above link didn't work for me, but I found it at www.medpagetoday.com/Psychiatry/Depression/41249

Among other things, it says, "A hypothesis dubbed the "masculine depression framework" suggests that depressed men are more likely than depressed women to exhibit externalizing symptoms such as anger, self-destructive behavior, or substance abuse. It has also been suggested that irritability is a key symptom of depression in men, but not in women.

In the study, which involved secondary analysis of data from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R), the researchers created and analyzed depression measures that combined traditional symptoms of depression with alternative symptoms.

One measure, which they called the Male Symptoms Scale (MSS) included eight symptoms associated with the hypothesis of male-type depression: irritability, anger attacks/aggression, sleep disturbance, alcohol or other drug abuse, risk-taking behavior, hyperactivity, stress, and loss of interest in pleasurable activities.

The second measure, which they named the Gender Inclusive Depression Scale (GIDS) included all these symptoms plus more traditional symptoms of depression, including sad/depressed mood, loss of vitality, tiredness, ambivalence, anxiety/uneasiness, and complaintiveness (feeling hopeless or pathetic).

Scores on the MSS could range from 0 to 8, with a score of 5 or higher meeting the researchers' criteria for depression. GIDS scores ranged from 0 to 15, with scores of 5 to 9 considered moderate depression cases and scores ranging from 10 to 15 labeled severe depression cases...."



It really makes me wonder about my son, who has always seemed rather irritable and talks about stress, sleep issues, etc. and now his latest interest is motorcycle racing....