Your teen used to be a happy kid, used to spend a lot of time with you and their friends, and used to play sports. Lately, however, they have been irritable, kind of withdrawn and have not been to basketball practice in over a month. You wonder, what happened to my happy child? You wonder, is my child depressed or are they just going through a rough time? – but how do you know? And what can you do as a parent?
What’s typical?
- Adolescence is a difficult transition and teens can experience “growing pains”
- Occasional bad moods or acting out are normal
- Some parental conflict is to be expected as they start to assert their independence
- Feeling sad or down are natural emotions and they can be reactions to daily stressors. Most people deal and get past these feelings within a few days.
- Persistent sadness or hopelessness
- Irritability, anger, hostility
- Tearfulness or frequent crying
- Withdrawal from friends and family
- Loss of interest in activities
- Changes in eating habits
- Restlessness and agitation
- Feelings of worthlessness and guilt
- Lack of motivation
- Difficulty concentrating
- Fatigue or lack of energy
- Negative/pessimistic thinking
- Insomnia or oversleeping
- Problems at school due to low energy and concentration difficulties
- Drug and alcohol abuse – as a form of self-medication
- Low self esteem – feelings of ugliness, shame, failure, and unworthiness
- Increased use of the internet in order to escape problems, but causes further isolation
- Engagement in reckless behavior
- Self-harming behaviors
- Offer support
- Be gentle and persistent
- Listen and don’t criticize
- Validate feelings
- Cognitive behavioral therapy is the most common treatment for adolescent depression. Through CBT, adolescents are taught to challenge their negative thoughts that are common in individuals with depression and learn how to cope with their depression
- If depression is severe, treatment may involve a combination of individual therapy as well as medications such as antidepressants
