The symptoms of depression in adolescents tend to be slightly different from those in adults. Depression and anhedonia are often the two main symptoms of depression in adults, while children are more likely to have major symptoms such as irritability and physical discomfort.
Symptoms of depression in adolescents include difficulty concentrating, extreme shyness, feeling hopeless, unexplained physical discomfort, sleep problems, changes in appetite, and thoughts or behaviors that hurt themselves.
As a parent, how do you detect symptoms of depression in your child early? Professor Rong Xinqi, an expert in adolescent psychology, said that if you suspect that your child may suffer from depression, you can pay attention from the following aspects.
1. Sadness
Children may feel sad about many things, such as missing something, moving or losing a friend, pet, or loved one. Try to find out what your child is upset about and provide support. If the symptoms of grief improve or disappear after a few days, they may not be associated with depression.
Depressed children may have a general sense of sadness about their lives and futures, or they may not be sure what they are sad about. They may cry for no reason or cry often. When the child's grief persists for more than two weeks, the parent needs to take the child to see a psychologist.
2. Stay away from friends and family
As children enter puberty, they naturally distance themselves from their families and begin to identify more with their peers. This is an important development step that should not be confused with social retreat. When social withdrawal is associated with depression, it can lead to a negative social experience in the child, which can exacerbate depressive symptoms (such as being worthless or feeling that no one likes and understands them).
Depressed children may dramatically stay away from friends, family, and other people they were once close to. They tend to be self-sufficient and avoid interaction altogether. They may stop attending classroom, social, and extracurricular activities.
3. Lose interest in activities
Your child may naturally lose interest in something they once loved, such as a favorite toy or TV show, if it is suddenly announced that they no longer want to engage in a favorite activity. This may not be depression.
But when a depressed child has a hard time finding joy or excitement in anything. You need to be aware of the fact that depressed children usually have no fun with what they do when they may be indifferent to almost everything.
4. Feeling misunderstood
Every child will feel misunderstood at some point. A depressed child may feel that no one can understand their feelings, or even trying to talk about them is pointless. Depressed children may be afraid to try new things or share ideas for fear of rejection, misunderstanding, or ridicule.
5. Academic performance declines
Over time, children may have academic ups and downs. But grades in depressed children may drop significantly. Absenteeism, inattention or simply skipping class are all causes of declining grades. This may be even more pronounced in children who have excelled in the past.
6. Feelings of guilt
Excessive and relentless feelings of guilt are common in adolescents with depression, such as major depressive disorder, depressive episodes of bipolar disorder, and dysthymia. Children with depression may blame themselves for anything that went wrong, even if it's out of their control.
7. Low sense of self-identity
Teens with depression may often feel worthless or have a low sense of self-identity, especially after a negative event. Children who experience a sense of worthlessness often think of them as weak, inadequate, or flawed.
Children who feel worthless may think they are inherently bad people and that everything they do is wrong. They may not put in any effort in their studies, nor will they get into unstable relationships, or even try to connect with others because they think their efforts will fail or lead to other problems.
8. Impulsiveness and aggression
For some depressed teens, their emotions can cause anger towards people or things they believe are causing pain, leading to impulsive and aggressive reactions.
Adolescent depression is a complex disease with multiple causes. Many different factors can contribute to the onset of depression in adolescents. Such as environment, family history, physical health, stress, etc. But on the other hand, children in the adolescent period in the personality, cognition has not been fully solidified, timely intervention, early detection of signs of depression is easier to eliminate the risk of depression, therefore, parents should pay more attention to some changes in their children's lives, in order to ensure the healthy growth of children.
Image: From the web
Article: Professor Rong Xinqi
Typography: Hypnotist Chen