Parents, consider the following scenario. Your 16-year-old son has had some difficulty sleeping over the past couple of months. In fact, best to say he’s getting no more than 3-4 hours a night and not because he’s doing school work until the wee hours of the morning.

His energy level and his appetite have also decreased…not so much that he seems concerned but something mentioned by the teenager’s mother during a routine physical exam. Interestingly, but not so surprisingly, he denies feeling sad about things and his mom states he is not living in a constant state of bad moods.

So my question to you all is might this be an example of teenage depression?

Absolutely. You see, teenage depression doesn’t always present with sadness and labile moods (AKA mood swings). In fact, some of the more common signs of teenage depression may go unnoticed if parents (and other caregivers) are only looking for the more obvious characteristics. Therefore, I feel it worthwhile to share with you all a rather comprehensive list of some obvious and not so obvious signs and symptoms of teen depression:

• Sadness, hopelessness and tearfulness

• Decrease in overall energy…follows along lack of motivation

• Changes in eating and sleeping habits

• Increase in overall irritability and/or hostility to others

• Unexplained aches

• Concentrating issues

• Withdrawal from friends and family

• Poor self-esteem

• Thoughts of death or suicide (which obviously requires immediate attention

Of course, with some of these signs/symptoms, it is important to get a sense of whether these are just a brief moment in the life of a teenager or something that has been going on for an extended period of time. Basically, is your teen acting different than his or her usual self? And if so, further evaluation and care is needed with your teen’s physician as well as a mental health care specialist because if left untreated, teen depression can lead to so many other problems including drug abuse, eating disorders, school problems, self-injury and even suicide. And if you ever suspect your teenager (or any teenager for that matter) is suicidal, immediate care is needed. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is one such organization that provides 24-hour suicide prevention and support at 1-800-273-TALK.

And remember, while getting the care your teen needs, remember some very simple but important tips on how to talk to your teen… be supportive, listen and don’t lecture, and acknowledge the feelings they are having.

Dr. Jeremy