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Did You Know About Teen Depression?

That feeling of being too low to socialise, the sensation of virtual pain, the emotional hurt that prevents engagement in various activities, that sentiment no one else can understand, that pain that no one can completely comprehend, those mood swings, those negative thoughts and that helpless feeling.

What are these feelings that are part of some adolescents' lives?  Where do they come from and how do they develop?

This is called adolescent or teen depression. This kind of depression is an actual medical problem which leads young adolescents to lose interest in activities and feel sadness at most times. Since adolescents encounter alot of changes as they enter adolescence, they are bound to experience both positive and negative feelings but sometimes when the negative thoughts take more space in teenage minds, it can pose a problem by creating depression in them. Teenagers are very easily affected by bad grades in high school, a scolding by a teacher or parent, a break up from a long term relationship or on being ridiculed by peers. These experiences of teenage life can become major issues for the adolescents who are new to everything that is happenning to them.

The development of body parts, the differentiating patterns of growth and the activation of hormones that start in adolescence can be a very important factor for the adolescents. They take these things very seriously as they are experiencing it for the first time in their lives. Even if they know about it beforehand, it is different when they go through the changes in actuality because it is then that they have to deal with it. Even a simple crush can give them painful experiences. For instance, a girl who has a crush on someone and if that person does not reciprocate the same feeling, the girl may take that negatively which in turn may affect her self esteem, she may continue to live with a low self image of herself and then she may further be saddened easily and develop a disposition towards depression. Not being able to do what peers are doing, or not being able to conform to the norm is often a big issue for adolescents because when they are in high school, what their peers are doing is one of the most important things in their lives. 

For an adolescent boy or girl, a break up from a long term relationship is one of the major causes which makes them susceptible to early depression. The parent may try their level best to make the child understand that these are all passing phases of life but the adolescent at this time is absolutely unable to  see the break up as a learning experience of life. Rather, in situations like these, every adolescent feels they are the only ones who can understand their pain, that their parents do not understand the intensity of how they feel, and their parents or friends can not completely understand what it feels like to break up. This is a very common phenomenon.

Adolescents experience so much in so little time that if certain changes overwhelm them to a great extent, it can very well harm their well being if the adolescent develops a negative perspective towards it. Adolescence is a very sensitive age and stage and anything and almost everything can affect the young adolescent which is why, there is a concern about what kind of experiences the adolescent must be exposed to and must not be exposed to. But this age and stage is also one of utmost curiosity, adventure and the want to explore oneself and the life around oneself, so it often becomes difficult to limit the adolescent's surroundings.

Besides this, there can be other reasons which can trigger the adolescent to feel low to such an extent that depression develops. Major changes in the family set up can leave a long lasting influence on the teenager. Divorce of parents is one such example. Parents who are divorced or are on the verge of divorce when the child is in adolescence, unknowingly impact their adolescent child negatively because amidst their divorce, their child feels neglected, feels the pain of seperation for both parents and feels the distance that the divorce will put them in and all these feelings together can lead to prolonged sadness which may as well result in depression.  The death of a close family member is another reason that can predispose a young adolescent towards depression. Loss of a parent at a young age can leave a child depressed and loss of a brother or an extremely close part of the family during adolescence of a child, can influence the child to think only negatively and succumb to sadness which if prolonged ultimately turns into depression. And if depression strikes so early, it can also predispose depression in later years or set their well being to develop phychological distress even when they are older.

A longitudinal study on adolescents ageing 14-16 and 16-21 concluded that, young people having early depression were at increased risk of later adverse psychosocial outcomes. There was a direct linkage in which early depression was associated with increased risk of later major depression and anxiety disorders.

Early depression almost always leaves young adolescents predisposed to depression and other such pychological conditions later in their lives.

Tips For Parents:

• Give your adolescent child a friendly environment.
• If you know what is troubling your adolescent child, educate yourself about it and create situations that will help them overcome their troubles.
• Try to monitor the experiences your child is exposed to, control what you can.
• Teach your adolescent child to be resilient in the face of adversity.
• Be available for your child, make sure they don't feel reluctant in coming up to you with their doubts.
• Take special care that your behaviours or problems don't pose problems for your child.

Tips For Adolescents: 

• Develop a positive realationship with your parents.
• Share your experiences with your parents, there is no need to hide anything from them.
• Seek guidance when you think you need to.
• Admit your mistakes, don't feel shameful in admitting your faults.
• Try to surround yourself with people who make you happy and who accept you the way you are.
• Develop a strong self esteem which is not easily shakeable by people around you.
   

Adolescence is all about new experiences, self control and understanding oneself. If the adolescent is confused about their own identity, they face problems in developing confidence in them which then reduces their belief in themselves which again reduces their capacity to give their best and this can also leave them depressed about their own inabilities.

Adolescent depression is not occasional episodes of sadness but it is a prolonged serious condition which can implicate their lives negatively. There are several misconceptions about teenage depression as there are misconceptions about teenagers. Yes, the adolescent years are tough but most of them make it through by confronting the angst and troubles in their lives and balancing their inadequacies with good friendships.

Since adolescents face alot in terms of finding themselves, finding out where they fit in, understanding their bodily processes, accepting themselves and living with these changes, they are extremely easily affected by everyday problems and events.

Poor academic performance, overwhelming feelings, sudden death in family, major changes in parent relationship and accepting developmental changes are tasks for the adolescents which at times, become too difficult for them to manage and balance along with their lives.

Adolescent depression is not something as easy as a weak self esteem which can be resolved by increasing willpower, it needs proper and long term treatment. Psychological counselling and medication is often required to help young adolescents cope with and overcome this early depression.