4. Lack of enthusiasm or motivation
5. Decreased energy level
6. Major changes in eating or sleeping habits -- teens tend to overeat, but some undereat. Girls tend to crave carbohydrates. Will oversleep or undersleep and complain of fatigue.
7. Increased irritability, agitation, anger or hostility -- sometimes teens will act out or delve into risky behaviour to draw attention to the fact that they have depression.
8. Frequent physical complaints such as headaches and stomachaches
9. Indecision or inability to concentrate -- school grades will drop
10. Extreme sensitivity to rejection or failure
11. Journals and drawings will reflect dark images and/or thoughts
12. Behaviour that involves excessive aggression directed toward oneself or others, or involves persistently sad themes -- sometimes teens will dabble in risky behaviour such as unprotected sex, hanging out with a bad crowd, cutting, or experimenting with drugs and alcohol to mask their pain.
13. Recurring thoughts or talk of death, suicide or self-destructive behaviour
The importance of early diagnosis and treatment
Kate Scowen, a former youth worker and author of My Kind of Sad: What It's Like to Be Young and Depressed (Annick Press, 2006), describes depression as "anger turned inward". In her book, she includes interviews with 15 teens suffering from mood disorders such as manic depression, depression, anxiety disorder and anorexia nervosa. She says that depression can be a lifelong, episodic illness and therapy will help identify triggers to depression. The sooner teens seek treatment, says Scowen, the more resilient they will be when faced with subsequent episodes of depression.
Treatment includes either talk therapy (also known as psychotherapy) or medication such as antidepressants, or a combination of both. Dr. Cheung says that roadblocks that prevent teens from getting help still exist. Parents especially are reluctant to seek help because of the stigma attached to mental illness. No one wants to believe that their child is "crazy." Consequently, denial sets in. There is a refusal to recognize the depression for what it is, and a belief that the problem will just go away. Another common roadblock to seeking help, Dr. Cheung says, is that it's too easy to find excuses for feeling sad or angry and for justifying these feelings.
"It's not physical pain, so it's hard for people to understand," says Cheung. "But it's emotional pain, so they're really going through a tough time. You treat them now because they're suffering. And the teens will tell you that it's suffering as great as having a broken leg or a broken arm, except no one notices it. So, it's a very difficult illness to have."
Page 2 of 3 -- Find professional advice on treating teen depression on page 3
