Difference between Male and Female Depression

Man and woman are different by nature. They are different not only by physical structure but also by the way of thinking, lifestyles and so on. So it is obvious that they will handle different situation in different way and react in different manner from each other.

Though depression is common for both male and female even the symptoms and outcomes of depressive disorder are quite similar, but there are some dissimilarities prevail between male depression and female depression.

The main difference starts from the rate of depression. The rate of depressive disorder is higher among women than men. In USA the number of female depression is more than 12 million people where the number of male depression is 6 million. Men also develop less depression than female. However, the basic differences between male depression and female depression are given below:

1. At puberty stage girls develop depression earlier than boys do due to some hormonal, psychological and physical changes.
2. Sexual abuse, gender discrimination, social biasness lead adolescent girls to experience negative image of life more than boys.
3. After any unusual circumstance, female take more time to adjust with that event and their depression lasts longer whereas male can adjust themselves within short period of time and also become able to come out from depressive illness earlier than female.
4. Comparing to men, women have to go through more worrying life events due to social and cultural differences.
5. Depressed women have a tendency to show visible signs of emotion, such as crying at any simple matter where depressed men are reluctant to express their emotion.
6. Some unusual symptoms like over sleeping and excess eating habit could be found in a depressed woman, which can put weight on her. But a depressed man often experiences the signs of sleeping disturbance and loss of appetite.
7. Depressed man tends to express their depressive symptoms of hostility, irritability, reckless behavior whereas women express their feelings of guilt, grief, loneliness, worthlessness, and eating disorder symptoms of depression.
8. A depressed female may like to avoid conflict whereas a depressed man more likely to generate conflict.
9. A depressed woman blames herself for the illness. On the other hand a man who is in depression blames others for developing this disorder.
10. Depression may lead a female to be chronic procrastinator whereas it leads a male to be an obsessive time keeper.
11. Strong fear of failure is the common sign of depressed male. However, women could develop the sign of strong fear of success.
12. Depressed males tend to increase their habit of having drug and other intoxicants more than depressed female.
13. Seasonal changes such as excessive cold or excessive heat also can bring depression among both men and women. But women are more prone to depressive illness due to seasonal changes.
14. Males basically hide their emotional difficulties due to depression and do not seek for treatment. But most of females often seek for treatment to come out from depression.
15. Generally, women have the possibility to experience 20% to 26% lifetime risk of major depression where it is only 8% to 12% for men.
16. Suicidal thoughts or suicidal deaths are frequently visible in depressed women than depressed men.
17. Major depression may lead both men and women to develop suicidal thought even some of them can commit to suicide. But there could be difference in men's and women's suicidal behavior. In most cases, the depressed males choose violent suicidal method, for example hanging, asphyxiation etc. In contrast, depressed female may select self-poisoning as the suicidal method.
18. Even after the complete recovery, most of the female often experience it again than male does.