Being a teen can sure be troublesome. This is the stage in which a person is stuck between being a playful child and being a serious adult. Puberty starts to strike. Physical changes begin to surface and become obvious. It is a part of growing up that most people see as an awkward transitional phase. You begin to doubt yourself, to question yourself, and even begin to lose yourself.
These personal anxieties added with environmental pressures can lead to teen depression.
Remember the feeling when you failed a subject after being at the top of your class? Or that time when your crush deemed you unworthy of his or her attention? How about that time at the prom when everyone in your circle of friends started popping cherries while you were just sitting in the corner drinking lemonade?
Depression in teens can be caused by almost everything that may affect the teen negatively. But, whatever the cause, if doing things the teen usually enjoys doesn't help alleviate his sadness or loneliness anymore, then there is a good chance that he/she has teen depression.
One of the newest causes of depression in this modern technological generation is cyber-bullying.
Dr. Melinda Ring shared the story of her son's depression to CNN.
Matthew, Dr. Ring's 13-year-old son, experienced persistent anxious and depressing thoughts when he was 12. The biggest question for his parents, and possibly for all the parents of depressed teens, was whether social media access was harming or helping their child.
Matthew was introduced to an experienced social worker. His parents decided that a total cut off from social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and such, can be detrimental in the longer run. They conferred with Matthew's social worker to let Matthew use Instagram as a mode of connection to others who might be experiencing depression like Matthew.
Other social media platforms also have such support groups that welcome everyone who are suffering from teen depression, and give them a push to go on with their life.
"Social media is embedded in the social and emotional fabric of our teens' lives. As parents we need to stay involved, walking the challenging line between teen privacy and autonomy, while ensuring safe, productive and even healing social media experiences," says Dr. Ring.
