According to Therese J. Borchard at the World of Psychology, approximately 20 percent of teens experience depression before they reach adulthood, and between 10 to 15 percent suffer from symptoms at any one time. Only 30 percent of depressed teens are being treated for it. Some teens are more at risk for teen depression and suicide than others.
Among them:
- Teen females develop depression twice as often than men.
- Abused and neglected teens are at risk.
- Adolescents who suffer from chronic illnesses or other physical conditions.
- Teens with a family history of depression or mental illness. Between 20 to 50 percent of teens suffering from depression have a family member with depression or some other mental disorder.
- Teens with untreated mental or substance-abuse problems. Approximately two-thirds of teens with major depression also battle another mood disorder like dysthymia, anxiety, antisocial behaviors, or substance abuse.
- Young people who experienced trauma or disruptions at home, including divorce and deaths of parents.
With that in mind, we have gathered resources to help you learn more about anxiety and depression in adolescents.
Teen depression
5 things you should do if you think your teen is depressed
Depression screener
Tamar Chansky’s “Freeing your Child from Anxiety”
Wilson & Dufrene’s “Things Might go Terribly, Horribly Wrong: A Guide to Life Liberated From Anxiety”
Eifert & Forsythe’s “Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook”
A CD for guided meditation