Parents Can Help Teens Get
Through Bipolar and Clinical Depression
By Doreen Nagle
(June 8, 2004) -- Mental health is a vitally important part of your child’s
life. Without it, he will not be resilient when disappointment — or worse —
strikes, as it does in every life. Get to know the signs of
clinical depression
so you can
help your teen back to feeling good about himself.
Symptoms
* Has your teen had a change in appetite or
behavior that has lasted for more
than just a few days? Has she stopped seeing friends she couldn’t “live without”
a few weeks ago?
Is she sleeping more? Less? Given up on grooming? Isolating?
* Is he feeling “less than,” worthless, guilty, unlikable or other
self-loathing emotions? Is he irritable and not in his usual joking mood?
* Does clinical depression, bipolar disorder or any other mental health
condition run in the family?
* Has there been a major change in your child’s life? This does not always
mean a bad thing. Too much of a good thing can also create the stress that leads
to depression: new house, new school, elected president of the student council
and so forth.
Fixes
* Listen to teens even if you don’t like what they have to say. Your teen
needs to be heard. Don’t prejudge by thinking, “She’s just a kid, what could she
know?”
* Don’t demand that your teen “snap out of it.” If emotional problems were
that easily fixed, your teen would gladly oblige. Ask gentle, inquiring
questions: “Did the test you took turn out the way you had hoped?”; “Are you
still dating the same girl?” Acknowledge feelings: “I bet that must have hurt
you.”
* Don’t compare. “Why can’t you go to the movies with your friends instead of
sitting here feeling sorry for yourself?” If he felt he could, he would. More
helpful would be to talk together over an ice cream sundae or a short walk.
* Taking on the problem for your child will make her reticent to tell you
more. If she is feeling rejected by the “cool” girls, help direct her to
activities where she will feel more welcomed vs. giving those girls a piece of
your mind, which might be tempting but not helpful.
* Seek professional help and remember
prescription drugs may only be a part
of the solution. Talk therapy with a licensed professional can be exceptionally
helpful. It gives your child a safe place to discuss matters with a
nonjudgmental, objective therapist that may be too painful to face otherwise.
* If your tendency is to see life pessimistically, your child may mimic this
attitude. Change your negative thinking, and you’ll change not only your life
for the better, but also the life of your child.
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