Our nation as a whole is experiencing a widespread epidemic of depression. The rates are growing quicker than ever, especially with teenagers who are combated with more stress than teens of the past couple decades. With the pressure of excelling in school, maintaining a proper social life, performing in extracurriculars, pleasing parents, and looking perfect on Instagram, there’s a lot to go through as an adolescent. Symptoms of depression can take a while to develop as they go through these motions in life, but not addressing them early can lead to seriously negative consequences.
When a teenager is feeling depressed, his or her mental suffering isn’t the only reason it’s important to get professional help. In addition to the depression disorder itself, there are several other effects that may cause lifelong issues if it’s left in the dust to deal with. From extremely low energy, poor concentration in class, to a drop in social and academic motivation, the consequences are brutal for a young person to work through alone. If you remember how you thought in middle or high school, you’ll find that your confidence and self-image was still pretty weak because fitting in was the most important at the time. If you mix in long term symptoms of depression, that already wobbly sense of integrity can shatter and impact a potentially successful future. If you happen to know a teenager in your life who has depression, make sure you are educated enough on the types of depression there are and the causes of depressionto ensure you can point them to the best treatment possible.
Causes of Depression
Depression in teenagers can be traced from several different causes. The variety of negative effectsof teenage depression go far beyond just having a mood that is more sad than usual. Depression can basically destroy the basics of your teen’s personality, lead to an overwhelming feeling of sadness, frustration, and fatigue. Many rebellious and unhealthy behaviors in teenagers are key signs of depression as well since they are trying to cope with changes happening in their body. In turn, they tend to act out their problems by replying to questions with anger, hiding their whereabouts during the day, turning to secret behaviors of drugs or alcohol, and hanging out with friends who cause trouble.
To deal with these behaviors, make sure to act as compassionate and curious as much as possible. You don’t want to come across as aggravating or too judgmental. Ask your teenager more open ended questions about their mood in a gentle manner, without acting too emotional. Even friends or parents who have the best intentions will have trouble realizing that they’re being too critical. The biggest mistake to make here is to try to solve their problems are pry into the people who make up their social life. Teenagers want to have a listening ear but still want their privacy as well to feel confident in their own skin. This way, you’re letting them know that you are hearing them out and aren’t trying to fix their personal concerns. No one likes to feel like the submissive party so be sure to treat them as an equal despite their odd behavior. By the time they feel ready enough to open up and talk, then you’ll have a better idea of what types of treatments you can recommend.
Types of Depression
Understanding the type of depressiona teenager is experiencinghelps doctors and their family determine what treatment is best. And for those who diagnosed with depression, knowing more about their specific disorder can be extremely helpful. More than 16 million Americans in a given year experience the most common type of depression: it is known as major depression or clinical depression.
In order to be diagnosed with this disorder, a person must have at least five symptoms occurring for at least two weeks or longer to be diagnosed. Those symptoms can include feeling extremely sad during the day, feelings of emptiness, worthlessness, low energy, little appetite, and zero interest in activities that were once enjoyable. If a person isn’t responding well to anti-depression treatment, they are then diagnosed with “treatment resistant depression” from their doctors. This can be due to medication not being strong enough or having a genetic trait from their parents that are more prone to developing the disorder in general. Helping people overcome treatment-resistant depression calls for an extremely thorough check up to ensure a proper diagnosis for their physical and mental symptoms.
On the other hand, a teenager who has a few of the classic symptoms of depression but not quite check all of them calls for a diagnosis of “subsyndromal depression.” This means that the person may have only three or four symptoms that have been occurring for a period of time shorter than the usual two weeks. If the person can still carry on with their everyday responsibilities, experts won’t classify the disorder as one that is severe as simple lifestyle changes can be made to improve their health. However, if the person is indeed struggling, they can still benefit from a customized treatment plan that involves the use of medication.
Make A Move
Teenagers are known to be the most stubborn humans on Earth, but don’t let their aggressive behavior stop you from pointing them in the right direction for treatment. If he or she is displaying some key signs of depression, make sure to sit down with them to talk about their situation so you can explore what options are available!