Help for parents of depressed teens
As a parent of a depressed teen, you need to know that the numbers are frightening…
- At least 25% of teenagers in North America this year will suffer from varying degrees of teen depression.
- 24% of U.S. high school students have seriously thought about attempting suicide.
- The ratio of suicide attempts to suicide death in youth is estimated to be about 25:1.
- More males than females are successful (by a factor of 4 because they use guns over pills).
As you can see, teen depression is serious and there is a lot to know as a parent if you’re watching your teen suffer and want to prevent a crisis situation.
Your first step is this:
ACT NOW. DON’T WAIT. DON’T THINK YOU HAVE TIME. THAT COULD COST A LIFE. THAT COULD LEAD TO AN ACCIDENT. ACT NOW EVEN IF YOU THINK YOUR TEEN ISN’T IN THAT BAD OF SHAPE.
That said: You likely know this. In fact it’s likely what brought you here.
So first: Great work! You’re on the right path to getting your teen out of suffering.
Still – you may be struggling with knowing what to do. Or, you may have tried to help, but you’ve been unsuccessful. If you’re looking for more strategies.
Wherever you are….it’s ok.
Working with depressed teens is a challenge. And very stressful. When your kid hurts (no matter what age), you hurt too.
Often, teens can be stingy communicators. Some are embarrassed about their struggles. Some don’t know how to talk to their parents or close friends about tough situations they are dealing with.
Here’s the good news, however…
Teens have an advantage over older depression sufferers. They are young and have time to learn critical skills for dealing with challenges in life. Skills learned now can prevent a crisis during adulthood. As a parent or caregiver, it’s part of your job to train them.
All the tools you need for helping them out of their depression and instilling strong mental health skills are here at Depression.Zone.
You first job is to educate yourself immediately.
Here are three easy steps:
- Start with this free cheat sheet on immediate actions to take with your teen.
- Read our Start Here page.
- Grab a copy of this free mini ebook: How to help a depressed teen.
Knowledge is key and it will help you uncover new actions to take.
Here are some of our most popular depressed teen caregiver resources:
- Depression recovery map: A downloadable PDF that easily shows what causes depression with question assessment lists that will help you identify core issues so you can help your loved one get into action.
- Parent of teen strategy guidebook
- The Feel Better Now book – everything you need to know about depression
- Video: Resolving upsets
- Video: Teens on antidepressants
- Need help now? Use the ask an expert feature
- What you need to know to avoid misdiagnosis
- How do antidepressants work?
- Managing your own mental health while you provide support
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