Topic > The Depression Reflex: Using Teenage Depression

When I went out, I was in America, but inside my house, it was Mexico. My father was the head of the house. This was not the case for some of my American friends” (Sue & Sue, 2008, p. 375). Reading this quote reminded me of the client because she talked about adjustment issues and the fact that her father was the breadwinner. The textbook included a chapter on counseling Hispanics and Latinos. Sue and Sue discussed the importance of family value among the Hispanic population. Learning this made me understand why it was so important for the client to build a relationship with her mother and father whom she had not seen in almost fourteen years. Sue and Sue explained that “stress found among adult Mexican immigrants results in depressive symptoms…cultural conflicts all function as stressors for recent immigrants” (Sue & Sue, 2008, p. 386). Therefore, stress from immigration and cultural conflicts may also contribute to the client's depressive symptoms. However, as I learned in the diversity course, it is important to evaluate clients' importance of their culture and determine whether depression is the result of cultural conflict rather than creating an illusion.