Depression in Children and Teens
Identifying depression in children and teens may be more difficult than it is with adults. Youth are naturally more expressive in all of their feelings, positive and negative, and as their personalities evolve and they try on different attitudes, it may be hard to discern when a period of moodiness is “just a phase” or when it is something more serious.
A general rule of thumb is that if any of these symptoms lasts for more than two weeks straight with no relief, it is time to talk to a professional:
- Constantly feeling irritable, sad, or angry.
- Lack of interest in activities that used to be fun.
- Feelings of worthlessness or guilt.
- Sleeping too much or not enough.
- Frequent unexplained headaches or other physical aches and pains.
- Unexplained crying jags.
- Unexplained weight loss or weight gain.
- Difficulty concentrating.
- Drop in grades, complaints from the teacher of non-cooperation, or not doing homework.
- Obsessing about death or suicide – seek help immediately.
Did you notice that many of the symptoms of depression are similar to the symptoms of drug or alcohol use? Before jumping to conclusions that the reason your teen has started doing poorly in school or wants to sleep all day is because he is smoking pot or drinking, have him evaluated by a mental health professional and/or a physician. It could be that he is having a hard time dealing with personal problems, or something physical could be causing his lethargy or extreme irritability.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, suicide was the third leading cause of death in people ages 10 to 24 in 2004, with the number increasing dramatically after age 15.
Children ages 10 to 14 — 1.3 per 100,000
Adolescents ages 15 to 19 — 8.2 per 100,000
Young adults ages 20 to 24 — 12.5 per 100,000
Teen boys are four times more likely to die from suicide than females but teen girls are more likely to attempt suicide. This may be because young men are less likely to express their feelings to parents or other adults, feeling they will be seen as weak or worthless. Males also often express their feelings in ways that make it harder to know they are depressed – with aggressive, destructive physical behavior rather than crying or any other show of sadness.
