Learn to recognize the symptoms of depression.

  When children feel unhappy or sad, they lose interest in activities they usually enjoy. When that happens, parents should consider the possibility that the child is depressed.  Other common symptoms of depression are:  complaining a lot about stomachaches, headaches, or other physical ailments; avoiding school and friends; and changes in sleeping habits such as sleeping too little or wanting to sleep all the time.

Depression often involves a loss of appetite, but occasionally a child suffering from depression will overeat.  Another sign of depression that is the tendency to develop behavior problems and to act out.  This acting-out characteristic is very common with depressed teenagers. 

In addition to these symptoms, depressed teens frequently are attracted to the use of alcohol and drugs, seem insecure about their sexuality and about dealing with the opposite sex, tend to be semi-loners and do not have many close friends with whom they can talk, and tend to think that everybody is much happier than they are. 

Depression and self-concept

In most cases, depressed individuals also have poor self-concepts.  Parents must be careful not to say and/or do things to make the poor self-concept even worse.  This generally happens when the child isn’t performing up to their ability.  Parents feel that their child isn’t putting forth enough effort, so they begin to fuss at the child.  This merely pushes the child into a deeper depression.

Parents must make every effort to help their children feel comfortable, good, and accepted. This helps to build the child’s self-concept.  With a strong positive self-concept,   children can usually cope with typical situations without any major problems.  Strengthening the child’s self-concept is good advice for parents whether their child is depressed or not.

Evaluation

Parents should not assume that their child will grow out of depression and should have the child evaluated by a child specialist qualified to determine if depression exists and if it is severe enough to require treatment.