Wondering why your teen is behaving odd and isolated? Well, this blog with top 10 signs of teenage depression can help you understand and support them better!

As a parent, seeing your dear child grow into a teenager is a beautiful experience. They grow out of their cocoon and begin experiencing the world first-hand. As they become more aware of their thoughts and feelings, they form their own identities. 

However, while entering into teens can be exciting and empowering, it’s not always a cakewalk. Your kid goes through significant hormonal changes and brain development, which may change the way they process emotions and handle stress. And a lot of times, this leads to a difficult condition called teenage depression.

Most teenagers are likely to struggle with teenage depression because of various factors associated with their physical, emotional, and mental changes. It’s important for you to identify the signs and causes of teenage depression, as it will help you offer timely support and treatment to your teen. Here’s all that you need to know. 

What is Teenage Depression?

Well, teenage depression is a mental health problem common in most teenagers. According to statistics, 1 out of 8 teenagers has depression. This serious mental health condition is often associated with a lack of interest, emotional and behavioral changes, and mood swings.

Identifying teenage depression can be difficult, especially because its signs are the normal signs of changes in your teen’s life. However, if your teenager continually acts irritably for over two weeks, they may be experiencing depression. 

Here are the top 10 signs you should look out for to know if your teenager is facing depression –

Spending More Time on Social Media

It sounds unlikely but social media can be a real cause of teenage depression.

According to a study conducted in the US, teenagers who spent more than 3 hours on social media were at a high risk of depression. 

Typically, social media exposes most teenagers to bullying, trolling, and harassment. They also begin comparing themselves with other people they see on social media. Such impressions result in unhappy life satisfaction, feelings of emptiness, and worthlessness. These negative feelings can later turn into teenage depression.

Developing Unrealistic Views About Themselves

Most depressed teenagers are likely to have unrealistic views about themselves. They have low self-esteem and keep judging themselves based on their personality. These feelings generally arise from societal pressures or expectations, harmful notions, and attacks on their identity. If your teen is always making comparisons based on their looks or personality, try to have an honest conversation with them; they may be struggling with teenage depression.

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Loss of Interest

Do you ever wonder why your teenager doesn’t do things they enjoy doing? Well, not to shock you. It’s normal for teenagers to lose interest once they reach this phase of life. That’s okay – we all outgrow our hobbies.

Nevertheless, losing interest in what you enjoyed once is also a sign of teenage depression. Now, how do you differentiate the two? 

An excellent way to differentiate between a typical teenager and a depressed one is by observing how they spend their free time. Most teenagers struggling with depression spend most of their free time alone. They entirely stop engaging in hobbies they used to do or even try new things.

Unhealthy Sleeping and Eating Habits

That’s a classic signs of teenage depression.

Just as adult depression results in unhealthy sleeping and eating habits, the same occurs in teenager depression. If your teenager is sleeping less than 6 hours and skipping meals regularly, they might be struggling with teenage depression. Negative thoughts may be the significant reason keeping them awake and making them lose their appetite.

According to a study that focused on the eating patterns of adolescents with depression conducted in Mumbai, India, depressed adolescents had a lower body mass index than those with moderate depression. 

Inattentiveness and Loss of Memory

Most kids struggling with teenage depression do not perform well academically. Research shows that teenage depression disrupts thinking abilities, interfering with how they recall specific memories and their ability to learn. If your teenager isn’t doing well in school or college, go easy on them and adequately address the issue.

Changes in Moods

Although mood swings in teenagers are a result of hormonal changes, teenage depression causes long-lasting negative mood episodes. The negative feelings that are associated with depression include hopelessness, guilt, emptiness, loneliness, and sadness. Teenagers may lush out these feelings towards their parents or even act aggressively.

Decline in Self-Care

A teenager struggling with depression has much to deal with. Stressors like the inability to socialize with peers, low academic grades, and stress about their physical appearance trigger specific behavioral changes like not doing basic hygiene activities.

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Loneliness

During teenage depression, one is likely to feel like no one cares about what they are going through. This response mechanism leads them to bottle up their emotions and withdraw themselves from friends, close relatives, and parents.

Drug and Alcohol Abuse

Teen depression is often associated with sadness, emptiness, guilt, and other negative feelings. To cope with the negative emotions, most teenagers struggling with depression turn to drugs and alcohol to get rid of the negative emotions. While it begins as an occasional intake, a lot of teens get addicted to substance abuse.

Self-Harm

Self-harm is a severe and dangerous coping mechanism used by teenagers struggling with depression. This is where teenagers deliberately hurt themselves to cope with emotional pain. Teenagers using this mechanism might or might not have intentions of killing themselves, but doing it can result in deadly injuries.

Teenagers who are self-harming are at a high risk of attempting suicide. If you notice your teenager engaging in self-harm, seek professional help from your counselor.

How to Help Your Teenager with Teenage Depression?

Now that you have learned the signs and symptoms of teenage depression, here are a few ways to ensure your teenager has a fun teenage life.

• Help your teenager take pride in their unique identity. You can do this by being supportive and not being judgmental.
• Be empathetic and show unconditional love to them. This will help build a strong relationship with them.
• Help them develop a positive view of themselves by giving them responsibilities that prove success.
• Set reasonable limits for their social media life. As much as you want your teen to cut loose from social media, being too harsh on them can result in more problems. 
• Teach them positive ways of handling emotional feelings to help break the self-harm cycle.
• Bring them to reality. Help them understand social media is not the real world.
• Help your teenager get depression treatment. Some teenagers may resist its acceptance, and one may have to go the extra mile to help guide them into the treatment.

Teenage depression can go away with the right treatments. However, the care and support of parents also play a huge role during difficult times. So help your kid know that you are there for them.

Found our mental health blog informative and useful? Keep checking The Glam Lives for more health and lifestyle posts.

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