How to Deal with Teen Depression

Depression or teen depression is a mental health disorder that hampers your ability to carry out your day-to-day activities such as eating or sleeping and prevents you from leading a stress-free life. Depression affects people of all ages, with its symptoms appearing in teenage years or early 20s and 30s. 

Depression is often accompanied by anxiety and stress disorders causing physical health conditions such as diabetes, insomnia, and much more. Depression is a common disorder that often gets ignored and taken lightly. The treatment for depression entails addressing the illness and charting out a therapy plan comprising psychological therapy combined with prescription medicines that target depression and the mental disorders that accompany it.

What is Teen Depression?

Teenage years hit us like a tornado sweeping us away from our sheltered lives to the real world, far from what we have in mind. Along with physical changes, our body goes through mental changes that instill a sensation of feeling intensely and often feeling too much. Feeling irritable or sad as you transition from a kid to adulthood is perfectly normal. But if these feelings intensify or don’t go away, making you overwhelmed, withdrawn, and helpless, you may be suffering from depression.

We label teenagers as angsty and moody due to the hormones surging in their bodies, making them irritable and temporarily sad. Teen Depression is more than just a general feeling of being down in the dumps. It is a severe mental health disorder that affects your attitude, your mood, and even the way you think or function in your daily life. 

Several causes may cause depression in teenagers, such as academic pressure, ambiguous future, social pressure, and challenges or hormonal changes. Once one hits puberty, it can get challenging to wrap your head around the duality of life as a kid and now as a teenager. The false belief that depression is a sign of weakness or character flaw is often a misconception we fall prey to. It is important to remember that you are not alone in this fight with a medical illness, and with the right kind of help, you can drastically improve the quality of your life.

What Causes Teen Depression?

There can be several factors that lead to causing depression in teenagers, such as:

• Nerve receptors in the brain may falter and under produce the ‘happy’ compounds needed for our brain to feel happy and relaxed. Abnormal or impaired production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin or dopamine can lead to depression.
• The first thing that happens when you enter your teenage years is the hormone imbalance in your body. Fluctuating hormones causing physical changes in a teenager’s body can also trigger or cause depression.
• Your genes play a pivotal role in defining the physical and mental illnesses that may affect you. Depression is common in people whose blood relatives suffer from the same condition.
• Traumatic childhood events such as physical or emotional abuse may trigger depressive episodes causing permanent brain changes leading to depression.
• The first thing one feels when suffering from depression is an intense feeling of helplessness. Depression caused by poor habits can be traced back to learned patterns of negative thinking. This pessimistic view of the world is adapted from the parents who might also suffer from depression. The lack of positive examples on how to overcome challenges in life may lead to anxiety and depression.

What are the Symptoms of Teen Depression?

Teenage depression can appear very different from depression in adults. The common symptoms observed in teenagers suffering from depression are:

• Mood Swings

Irritability and sadness are an integral part of being a teenager. A depressed teenager may show signs of being hostile, easily frustrated, prone to anger outbursts, and may appear grumpy with sudden mood swings.

• Aches and Pains

Depressed teenagers complain about physical ailments such as headaches, stomach aches, and muscle aches with unexplained causes. Once a thorough physical exam is conducted, revealing no signs of complications, these aches and pains may indicate depression.

• Sensitivity to Criticism

Teenagers that suffer from depression go through intense feelings of worthlessness, the hopelessness that may cause extreme vulnerability to criticism, rejection, and failure. 

• Withdrawn attitude

Adult depression causes one to isolate themselves. Teenage depression, on the other hand, makes them withdraw from most people and still maintain some form of relationships and friendships with their friends. It may cause you to switch your crowd-drawing away from your parents and socializing less than before.

How to help a Depressed Teenager?

Depression can trigger chronic illnesses when left untreated, making it crucial to get help in time. Providing your teen with utmost love and care in a non-judgmental way is the key to pave the way for healing. The first step to begin your recovery from depression is to address your behavioral and emotional issues. Listening should be the focus when opening a dialogue with your teen instead of lecturing. Even though the depression symptoms may appear trivial, it is important to resist any urge to criticize or pass judgment once there is an open line of communication. Listening and making them feel heard is the key to gaining your teenager’s trust.

You ought to show your unconditional support yet be persistent at the same time. Even if your initial actions fail to receive positive results, give it time. It can be difficult for teens to open up about depression and other heavy topics. They need time and space before figuring out how to express their feelings. Seek help from a medical health professional, favorite teacher, school counselor – any professional that your teenager may feel comfortable around.