A young girl named Ashley found herself less interested in fruitful things of her life, and her friends were starting to notice it too…

“Lately Ashley hasn’t felt like herself,” “yea she even turned down going to the mall last Saturday!,” “we can always count on Ash for a little shopping,” >her friends talk about their struggle to see whats bothering their friend. There was really no reason not to go, but Ashley just didn’t feel like it. Instead, she spent her Saturday afternoon sleeping…

  Staying in more than usual isn’t the only change in Ashley. She’s always been a really good student. But over the past couple of months her grades have fallen and she had trouble concentrating. She forgot to turn in a paper that was due and is having a hard time getting motivated to study for her finals.

 Ashely feels tired all the time but has difficulties falling asleep. She’s gained weight too. When her mother asks her what’s wrong, Ashley feels like crying. But she dosen’t know why. Nothing particularly bad has happened. Yet Ashley feels sad all the time and cant seem to shake it.

Ashley may not realize it yet, but she is depressed.

 Depression is very common and affects as many as 1 in 8 people in their teen years. Depression affects people of EVERY color, race, economic status, or age; however, it does seem to affect more girls than guys.

How do people respond to someone who’s depressed?

Sometimes friends or family memebersrecognize that someone is depressed. They may respond with love, kindness, or support hoping that the sadness will soon pass. They may offer to listen if the person wants to talk. If the depressed feeling dosentpass with a little time, friends or loved ones may encourage the person to get help from a doctor.

…But not everyone recognizes depression when it happens to someone they know.

Some people don’t really understand depression. For example, they may react to a depressed person’s low energy with criticism, yelling at the person for acting lazy or not trying harder. Some people mistakenly believe that depression is just an attitude or a mood that a person can shake off. It’s not that easy.

Sometimes even people who are depressed don’t take thier condition seriously enough. Some people feel that they are weak in some ways because they are depressed. This is wrong- and it can be harmful if it causes people to hide their depression and avoid getting help.

Occasionally, when depression causes physical symptoms (things like headaches or other stress-related problems), a person may see a doctor. Once in a while, even a well-meaning doctor may not realize a person is depressed, and just treat the physical symptoms.

Why do people get DEPRESSED…?

There is no single cause for depression. Many factors play a role including genetics, environment, life events, medical conditions, and the way people react to things that happen in their lives.

Genetics:

  Research shows that depression runs in families and that some people inherit genes that make it more likely for them to become depressed. Not everyone who has the genetic makeup for depression have the condition. So although genes are one factor, they aren’t the single cause of depression.

Life Events:

  The death of a family member, friend, or even pet can go beyond normal grief and sometimes lead to depression. Other difficult life events, such as when parents divorce, seperate, or remarry, can trigger depression. Even events like moving or changing schools can be emotionally challenging enough that a person becomes depressed.

Family and Social Environment:

  For some teens, a negative, stressful, or unhappy family atmosphere can affect their self-esteem and lead to depression. This can lead to depression. This can also include high-stress living situations such as poverty; homelessness; and violence in the family, relationships, or community.

Subtance use and abuse also can cause chemical changes in the brain that affect mood -alcohol and some drugs are known to have depressant effects. The negative social and personal consequences of substance abuse also can lead to severe unhappiness and depression.

Medical Conditions:

  Certain medical conditions can affect hormone balance and therefore have an effect on mood. Some conditions, such as hypothyroidism, are known to cause a depressed mood in some people. When these medical condtitons are diagnosed and treated by a doctor, the depression usually disappears.

For some teens, undiagnosed learning disabilities might block school success, hormonal changes might affets mood, or physical illness might present challenges or setbacks.

What happens in the brain when someone is depressed?

Depression involves the brain’s delicate chemistry – specifically, it involves chemicals called neurotransmitters. These chemicals help send messages between nerve cells in the brain. Certain neurotransmitters regulate mood, and if they run low, people can become depressed, anxious, and stressed. Stress also can affect the balance of neurotransmitters and lead to depression. Sometimes, a person may experience depression without being able to point to any particular sad or stressful event. People who have a genetic predispostition to depression may be more prone to the imbalance of neurotransmitter activity that is part of depression.

Medications that doctors use to treat depression work by helping to restore the proper balance of neurotransmitters.

Types of Depression

For some people, depression can be intense and occure in bouts that last for weeks at a time. For others, deprssion can be less severe but can linger at a low level for years. Doctors who treat depression distinguish between these two types of depression. They call the more severe, shor-lasting type major depression, and the longer-lasting but less severe form dysthymia (pronounced: diss-thy-me-uh).

A third form of depression that doctors may diagnose is called adjusted disorder withdepressed mood. This diagnosis refers to a depressive reaction to a specific life event (such as a death, divorce, or other loss), when adjusting to the loss takes longer than the normally expected timeframeor is more severe than expected and interferes with the person’s daily activities.

What does Depression look like?

Symptoms that people have when they’re depressed can include:

• depressed mood or sadness most of the time (for what may seem like no reason)
• lack of energy and feeling tired all the time
• inability to enjoy things that used to bring pleasure
• withdrawl from friends and family
• irritability, anger, or anxiety
• inability to concentrate
• signigicant change is sleep patterns (inability to fall asleep, stay asleep, or get up in the morning)
• feeling of guilt or worthlessness
• aches and pains (with no known medical cause)
• pessimism and indifference (not caring about anything in the present or future)
• thoughts of death or suicide

When someone has five or more of these symptoms most of the time for 2 weeks or longer, the person could be depressed.

Teens who are depressed may show other warning sings or symptoms, such as lack of interest or motivation, poor concentration, and low mental energy caused by depression. They also might have increased problems at school because of skipped classes. Some teens with depression have other problems, too, and these can intensify feelings of worthlessness or inner pain. For example, people who cut themselves or who have eating disorders may have unrecognized depression that need attention.

How is Depression differnt from regular sadness?

Everyone has some ups and downs, and sadness is a natural emotion. The normal stresses of life can lead anyone to feel sad every once in a while. Things like an argument with a friend, a breakup, doing poorly on a test, not being chosen for a team, or a best friend moving out of town can lead to feelings of sadness, hurt, disappointment, or grief. These reactions arusually brief and go away with a little time and care.

Depression is more than occasionally feeling blue, sad, or down in the dumps, though. Depression is a strong mood involving sadness, discouragement, despair, or hopelessness that lasts for weeks, months, or even longer. It can interfere witha person’s ability to participate in normal activities. Depression affects a person’s thoughts, outlook, and behavior as well as mood. in addition to a depressed mood, a person with depression can aslo feel tired, irritable and notice changes in appetite.

When someone has depression, it can cloud everything. The world looks bleak and the person’s thoughts reflect that hoplessnessand helplessness. People withdepression tend to have negative and self-critical thoughts. Sometimes, despite their true value, people with depression can feel worthless and unloveable. Because of feelings of sadness and low energy, people with depression may pull away from those around them or from activities they once enjoyed. This will usually make them feel more lonely and isolated, making the depression and negative thinking worse.

Depression can be mild or severe. At its worst, depression can create such feelings of despair that a person thinks about suicide.

Depression can cause physical symptoms, too. Some people have an upset stomach, loss of appetite, wieght gain or loss, headaches and sleeping problems when they’re depressed.

Getting Help

 Depression is one of the most common emotional problems in the United States and around the world. The good news is that it’s also one of the most treatable conditions. Therapists and other professional can help. In fact, about 80% of people who get help for their depression have a better quality of life – they feel better and enjoy themselves in a way that they weren’t able to before.

 Talk therapy with a mental health professionl is very effective in treating depression. Therapy sessions can help people understand more about why they feel depressed, and ways to combat it.

Sometimes, doctors prescribe medicine for a person who has depression. When prescribing medicine, a doctor will carefully monitor patients to make sure they get the right dose. The doctor will adjust the does as necessary. it can take a few weeks before a person fells the medicine working. Because every person’s brain is different, what works well for one person might not be good for another.

 Everyone can benefit from mood-boosting activities like exercise, yoga, dance, journaling, or art. It can also help to keep busy no matter how tired you feel.

People who are depressed shouldn’t wait and hope it will go away on its own because depression can be effectively treated. Friends or others need to step in if someone seems severyl depressed and isn’t getting help.

 Many people find that it helps to open up to parents or other adults they trust. Simply saying, “I’ve been feeling really down latley and I think I’m depressed,” can be a good way to begin the discussion. Ask your parnetto arrange an appointment with a therapist. If a parent or family member can’t help, turn to your school counselor, best friend, or a helpline to get hlep.

When Depression is Severe

  People who are extremely depressed and who ma be thinking of hurting themselves or about suicide need help as soon as possible. When depression is this severe, it is a very real medical emergency, and an adult must be notified. Most communities have suicide hotlines where people can get guidance and support in an emergency.

Although it’s important to be supportive, trying to cheer up a friend or reasoning with him or her probably won’t work to help depression or suicidal feelings go away. Depression can be so strong that it outweighs a person’s ability to respond to reason. Even if your friend has asked you to promise not to tell, severe depression is a situation where telling can save a life. The most important thing a depressed person can do is to gt help. if you or a friend feels unsafe or out of control, get help now. Tell a trusted adult, call 911, or go to the emergency room.

  Depression doesn’t mean a person is “crazy”. Depresison( and the suffering that goes with it) is a real and recognized medical problem. Just as things can go wrong in all other organs of the body, things can go wrong in the most important organ of all: the brain. Luckily, most teen who get help for their depression go on to enjoy life and feel better about themselves.