Teens can cultivate feelings of worthlessness and insufficiency over time that may give them the reasons to become depressed. Performance in school, social status, sexual orientation or family life can give major effect on the feelings among teens nowadays. Irritable and unhappy teens may be suffering from depression.
Symptoms of depression vary in severity. It changes teen’s emotions and behavior such as:
- Emotional change
- Feelings of sadness
- Hopeless
- Irritable
- Frustrated
- Low self esteem
- Frequent thoughts of death
- Behavioral change
- Tiredness or
- Insomnia
- Changes in appetite
- Self-harm
- Suicide attempt
Among teens, noticeable change in their thinking and behavior can be seen. They lose motivation and even become withdrawn and staying in their rooms for hours. Teens may sleep excessively, change eating habits, and may exhibit criminal behavior.
Here are more symptoms of depression among teens:
- Lethargy
- Protests of discomfort, such as, stomachaches, pain, or fatigue
- Striving concentrating
- Difficulty creating decisions
- Unnecessary or inappropriate guilt
- Irresponsible behavior like forgetting duties, being late for programs, missing school
- Forfeiture of significance in food or irresistible in eating that results in rapid weight loss or gain
- Uneasiness with death
- Stubborn behavior
- Sadness, anxiety, or a feeling of hopelessness
- Staying alert at night and napping during the day
- Sudden drop in grades
- Habit of alcohol or drugs and immoral sexual activity
Untreated teen despair can be extremely serious and even deadly. Teen despair tends to come and go in several episodes.
Varieties of methods are used to treat depression, including medications and psychotherapy. If family conflict is contributing to a teen’s depression, family therapy is helpful. The teen will also need support from family or teachers to help with any school or peer problems. Teens with severe depression may be required a hospitalization in a psychiatric unit.
FDA warns that using of antidepressant medication can increase the risk of suicidal thinking and behavior in adolescents with depression. Close monitoring and follow-up by the treating doctor is required if using antidepressant medicines.
FDA approved medications for teen depressions are the following:
- Fluoxetine (Prozac). It is used to treat major depressive disorder.
- Escitalopram (Lexapro). It is used to treat depression and generalized anxiety disorder.
Talk with your doctor about the medication options and the possible effects. Do not start taking these medicine during pregnancy without your doctor’s advice that may give your health risks.