Teen Depression

Teen depression can happen for a number of reasons and tends to occur quite often when a teenager needs more help fitting in during their high school years. Teen depression can be triggered by something as simple as not being popular, not having great grades or not making the football team. Some teens get depressed because they come from a poor family and can't afford to buy the right kind of clothes. Most schools have school counselors, but quite often they are over burdened and some students may not get a chance to speak with them. When a teenager becomes depressed they often feel alone and feel like they can't turn to their parents or friends for help. Some teenagers even turn to self medication to make themselves feel better.

So instead of receiving the right kind for counseling to treatment, some teenagers will instead turn to drugs, alcohol or sexual activity. Sometimes teen depression can be prevented if we notice the warning signs of them becoming depressed. When a teenager becomes despondent and isolated, those are usually signs of teen depression. Others signs that your teen may be suffering from depression is over or under eating or staying in bed until midday and having no interest in getting out of bed and enjoying life.

You really do need to get your child help if you think they may be suffering from depression. If not treated they may carry on this depression for their whole lives and therefore will have fairly miserable lives. Also if they received the correct treatment straight away it may prevent the drugs and alcohol from becoming a major part of their life. There are many prescription drugs and counseling treatments available for your child.

Help your teen get through the adolescent years and look ahead to the future. If you are not comfortable with putting your child on anti-depressant medications, there are also herbal treatments available that you can try, like St. John's Wort, that can alleviate teen depression. Many parents who can't get help from counselors at school or therapists, have started to look around the internet. There are many different solutions for teen depression.

As a parent you may even want to attend counseling sessions with your teenager and create an open environment so they may learn to open up and share their feelings. Adolescent years are difficult for more teenagers and increasing peer pressure drives some children to the edge. You can make a difference. Talking to a therapist or a psychiatrist or even going on the internet can give you more information on teen depression; and make your child safe and happy. A teenager who is well adjusted is less likely to get into trouble and more likely to succeed in life. A successful life is important for the future of your child and important for a parent as well.