An estimated 20% of teens suffer from teen depression before they reach adulthood. This means that one in every five teenagers you encounter has suffered from teen depression, is going through it, or will suffer from teen depression in the future.
WHO lists teen depression as one of the leading mental health disorders that cause adolescent disability and repeated illness.
Teen depression is a mood disorder characterized by frequent feelings of sadness with the loss of interest in daily activities. It can be hard to detect in your teen as this describes an average teenager.
Differentiating normal teen behavior and teen depression in a teenage girl or boy requires you as a parent to keenly observe the frequency and length of time the sadness lasts, the intensity of the emotions experienced, and the drastic effects it has had on your teen’s behavior.
Why Do Teenagers Get Teen Depression?
Teen depression occurs due to internal and external factors, more often a combination of both.
- Your teen may have learnt negative thinking patterns like feeling helpless, unworthy, incapable, or unloved.
- The raging hormonal changes that can overwhelm your teenager could also trigger teen depression.
- The function of the brain chemicals and messengers involved in stabilizing your teen’s mood and emotions could be abnormal or impaired.
- Going through a traumatic event, especially in childhood, and your teenager hasn’t received assistance in dealing with it.
- A family history of similar mental health disorders increases the chances of your teenager getting teen depression.
Assisting your teenager deal with teen depression is a tough job that requires a parent to be aware of the common depression signs and symptoms. The general signs of depression in a teenage girl and boy are similar.
Be on the lookout for these top 5 teen depression signs.
1. Emotional Signs
Frequent and prolonged feelings of sadness, crying spells, irritability, and uncontrolled moodiness. Most times, your teen cannot explain why they have these emotions, which causes them to feel helpless.
2. Behavioral Signs
Gradual loss of energy to perform tasks, sleeping too much or lacking sleep and increased episodes of angry outbursts over trivial things are examples of behavioral teen depression signs.
As a parent, you pick up fights with your teenager at this stage because you think they are being smart and want to evade their responsibilities without knowing they are having signs of teen depression.
3. Mental Signs
Unusual challenge with concentration, remembering simple instructions or events, making decisions, and preoccupation with negative thoughts, mostly about self.
The memory loss, lack of focus, and slowed thinking lead to conflict in the home as a parent thinks the teen is playing mind games with them as opposed to having signs of teen depression.
4. Physical Signs
Recurrent and vague physical complaints of illness like headache and stomachache, progressive weight loss, or weight gain with minimal attention to appearance and personal hygiene.
Your teenager may believe they have a serious illness, take medication often without being offered teen depression treatment.
5. Social Signs
Your teenager will isolate themselves from family and friends by deliberately picking up fights to be left alone or avoiding social gatherings.
Part of the teen depression treatment may involve counseling that seeks to address if the underlying issue stemmed from social phobias.
How You Can Help Your Teenager?
The recovery process for teen depression takes time. A teenager’s chances of full recovery increases when they receive positive parental support and experience a good parent-teen relationship.
Criticizing the signs of teen depression your teen experiences makes the treatment process more challenging.
Taking good care of yourself as you help your teen assures them you are in this together. It also gives them hope as they receive teen depression treatment.
Depression can lead to suicidal ideations and attempts; if you think your teen is heading in that direction, it is advisable to get professional help.
Depression/Suicide Helpline
Befrienders Kenya +25472217817
Niskize 24-hour helpline 0900 620 800 +254718227440
Oasis Kenya +254725366614, +254733366614
At Parenteen Kenya, we offer life skills training that prevents your teen from getting into teen depression. we also offer counseling services to teenagers going through teen depression and refer those who need multi-disciplinary care.
Jane Kariuki is a devout Christian, Clinician, Psychologist, and founder of ParenTeen Kenya. She authored an exceptional training manual used in her teens’ workshop and an instructional guidebook for her parenting classes. If she is not training, blogging, or counseling, Jane loves to spend time with her sweet husband and three children.
Very good article. It will help many parents and teenagers to solve the mystery of teens up bringing.
Thank you Terry, will continue to do more research and give quality and applicable information.
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