Abstract
This paper explains that women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) complain of irritability, anger, tension, marked depressed mood, mood lability, lethargy, sleep disturbance, limited concentration and many physical symptoms to such a degree of severity that their quality-of-life is seriously compromised. The author points out that inhibitors of serotonin reuptake, fluoxetine (Sarafem), may be an effective therapy. The paper states that PMS and PMDD are far more common in a woman's later years of fertility because these syndromes are caused by the lower estrogen levels and higher progesterone levels found more commonly in the latter half of a woman's reproductive life.

Table of Contents
Introduction
History and Background of PMS/PMDD
History
Inheritance and Relationship to Other Disorders
Cultural Aspects
The American Medical Association's Point of View
Conclusion

From the Paper
"Rubinow and Schmidt note that unlike mood disorders associated with the abnormal function of other endocrine glands (e.g., the adrenal or thyroid glands), PMS occurs in the context of normal ovarian function. The question then is why different women have different responses to what is ostensibly the same stimulus. This question is central to understanding behavior and is currently best addressed by studies in animals. Pharmacologic sensitization, kindling, and conditioning provide experimental models in which both the biologic and behavioral responses to a given stimulus are profoundly altered and determined by past experience with the stimulus. In these models, a stimulus that originally produces little or no effect may change the biologic substrate in a way that dramatically increases the severity of behavioral effects, purely as a function of repetition and the passage of time. Although the relevance of these models to PMS is uncertain, it is noteworthy that PMS is most frequently observed more than a decade after the initiation of ovarian cyclicity."

Tags:pharmacology, ovarian, depression, fluoxetine, estrogen

Abstract
This paper examines Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), which is a sever form of PMS that affects 2-8 percent of women. According ot the paper, the PMDD symptoms are so extreme and so incapacitating that women who experience it suffer socially, professionally and sexually. The paper discusses the hormonal causes of PMDD, explains how a diagnosis is reached, and reviews treatment options. Then the paper briefly addresses the controversy surrounding the determination of PMDD and asks whether this diagnosis is a fad or a medical fact. The paper concludes that when carefully made, PMDD is a valid diagnosis for a psychological/psychiatric condition that has physical, not emotional, causes, but which can have significant emotional, social and cognitive effects on the individual.

Outline:
Cause
Diagnosis
Treatment
Critics of the Diagnosis
Conclusion

From the Paper
"Although a lot has been learned about both PMS and PMDD, researchers have not been able to identify a clear cause for PMDD, which has both physical and psychological symptoms. The studies done so far tend to conflict with each other, denying both those who have PMDD and the doctors trying to help them a clear explanation for what is going on (Bosarge, 2003). However, recent research suggests that PMDD may result from an interaction between hormones released by the ovaries at ovulation and certain neurotransmitters in the brain (Bosarge, 2003). This would at least explain why the severe symptoms of PMDD appear during the second half of the reproductive cycle. Most researchers and doctors now believe that ovarian function rather than a hormonal imbalance causes PMDD, and that the condition is an interaction between the ovaries, the central nervous system and other organs (Steiner, 2000)."

Tags:period, menstruate, depression, clinical, hormonal, SSRIs, zoloft, paxil, prozac, sertraline, manic

Abstract
This paper analyzes and summarizes relevant peer-reviewed, scholarly, and reliable online literature to provide an overview of transgendered children in general and gender dysphoric children through puberty in particular. The paper asserts that gender is not an absolute or guaranteed condition in the human experience, and that even young children can experience some confusion concerning their perceptions of what gender they should be based on powerful family, cultural and social influences. This confused sense can result in subjective distress that is known as gender dysphoria, the paper explains; while most adolescents tend to grow out of their gender dysphoric state, some continue to experience this dichotomy between their anatomical and mental sense of their gender. The paper features an analysis of three studies, from the varying perspectives of essentialism, environmentalism, and constructivism, respectively. The paper concludes with an explanation concerning the rationale used by the respective researchers for selecting this theoretical basis, followed by a summary of the research and salient findings. An annotated reference page is also provided.

Review and Analysis
Transgendered Children
Conclusion
References

From the Paper
" While some transgendered youths experience verbal abuse and bullying, some are even subjected to outright physical torture and death as a result of their transgendered nature, with some high-profile cases including the 1993 murder of Brandon Teena (the account of which was made into the motion picture, "Boys Don't Cry"), and the murder of 17-year-old Gwen Araujo in 2002 who "was hogtied, strangled and then buried in a shallow grave by a group of teens. Araujo was killed after her attackers learned that she had been born a boy" (Adriano, p. 4). While transgendered children are therefore at risk of experiencing more violent encounters with their peers, many such children also experience rejection by their own family members. In this regard, Adriano quotes Ryan who emphasizes that, "Families reject their transgender children because of deeply held religious beliefs, cultural norms or pressure from other family members. Some forms of rejection, like physical violence, verbal humiliation or throwing your child out on the street, are obvious" (quoted in Adriano at p. 4)."

Tags:identity, sexuality, politics, youth

Abstract
This research paper examines the relationship between adolescence beliefs about the impact of rumination and stability of traits on depression. As part of the research, an affluent sample of fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth graders are examined. The paper attempts to uncover correlations, if any, between depression and rumination, attributional style, and stability of traits and attempts to determine if there are any differences between girls and boys in terms of depression, rumination, attributional style, and stability of traits. The paper also looks at whether or not older children are more likely to suffer from depression than younger children.

Outline
Theory of Rumination and Attribution
Learned Helplessness Theory
The Hopelessness Theory
Stability of Traits
Literature Review
Major Depression
Dysthymia
Bi Polar
Causes of Depression
Depression in Adolescence
Gender Differences in Depression
Attribution Style in General
Attribution in Adolescence
Gender Differences in Attribution Style
Stability of Personality Traits
Stability of Traits in Adolescence
Gender Differences in Stability of Traits
Rumination (Introspection) Style in General
Rumination in Adolescence
Gender Differences in Rumination

From the Paper
"Depression is the preeminent mental health issue of our time. (Klerman, Markowitz, and Weissman, 2000 World Bank, 1993) Depression affects millions of people each year and can have deadly consequences if it goes untreated. (Bernal et al 1995) The National Institutes of Mental health reports that, depression effects 9.5% or nearly 19 million of the American population (Depression, 2000) Researchers have consistently attempted to understand why some individuals are more prone to the development of the disorder than others are. The disorder affects men, women, children and adults. Over the last decade, the number of adolescents suffering from depression has also increased considerably. In addition, the number of adolescents committing suicide because of prolonged depressive episodes has increased dramatically. In fact, an estimated 4% of teenagers suffer from depression (Lerner 1993). In addition, studies have suggested that adolescents as young as seventh grade are significant moodier than younger children."

Tags:constant, reflection, dysphoric, symptoms, obsessive, thinking, lifes, choices, events, explain, shyness