{"id":4800,"date":"2011-04-26T09:15:23","date_gmt":"2011-04-26T13:15:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/beyondblue\/?p=4800"},"modified":"2015-11-30T14:49:40","modified_gmt":"2015-11-30T19:49:40","slug":"8-depression-busters-for-teens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/beyondblue\/2011\/04\/8-depression-busters-for-teens.html","title":{"rendered":"8 Depression Busters for Teens"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Teenagers are moody. Absolutely. Fluctuations in hormones cause angry outbursts, irritability, emotional hysteria, defiant behavior, and weepiness. So it\u2019s very difficult to tease apart teenage drama from legitimate depression and other mood disorders. However, it\u2019s worth the effort because depression and other mood disorders that begin in adolescence often become much more serious and difficult to treat as adult disorders.<\/p>\n

A 1996 study by the National Institute of Mental Health estimated that more than 6 percent of adolescents, between the ages of 9 and 18 years old, suffered from depression during the six-month period of the study, and almost five percent suffered from major depressive disorder. Moreover, many of the 20 percent of people who suffer from depression at some point in their lives have experienced depression as teenagers. I am part of that statistic, as my symptoms were definitely there in my adolescent years, and, had I been treated for depression at that time, I may not have developed such a severe mood disorder in my adult life. Here are eight tips teenagers might use to manage their depression.<\/p>\n

1. Get the Right Diagnosis<\/strong><\/p>\n

In his book, \u201cAdolescent Depression,\u201d<\/a> Francis Mark Mondimore, M.D, a psychiatrist at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, compares getting the right diagnosis of a mood disorder to discovering a piece of real-estate in a prime location. In other words, swap the phrase \u201clocation, location, location\u201d with \u201cdiagnosis, diagnosis, diagnosis\u201d because it is by far the most important factor in trying to get help for your mood disorder. A proper diagnosis is the foundation upon which a treatment program is built, so if you\u2019re starting with the wrong one, your attempts at getting well are severely jeopardized.<\/p>\n

2. Find the Right Doctor or Therapist<\/strong><\/p>\n

The second most important thing you can do is to find the right doctor and the right therapist for you. Don\u2019t settle. If there is any question in your mind, then go for a second opinion. I can\u2019t stress this point enough because I am convinced I would never have gotten well had I stayed with any of the doctors I visited before finding the right one for me. It takes energy, effort, and time. But so does depression and anxiety\u2014they can rob you years of your life. If your psychiatrist or therapist is threatened by your seeking a second opinion, that\u2019s all the more reason to shop elsewhere, because a good doctor will welcome another objective opinion and appreciate the homework done on your behalf. You may only need your doctor for a few months or a year, but it\u2019s good to think long term anyway. Would you feel comfortable seeing this person for a few years? If not, start shopping.<\/p>\n

3. Notice the Negative Thoughts<\/strong><\/p>\n

Can you hear your negative talking? \u201cI\u2019m a failure.\u201d \u201cI should give up.\u201d \u201cHe hates me.\u201d These thoughts manipulate our feelings, so that what begins as a negative thought ultimately leads to real symptoms of depression and anxiety. However, the good news is that by merely recognizing them, we\u2019ve won half the battle. Dr. David Burns lists ten forms of distorted thinking<\/a> in his bestseller, \u201cFeeling Good: The New Mood Therapy.\u201d<\/a> Among them are all-or-nothing thinking (\u201cThere is nothing useful about this class\u201d), overgeneralization (\u201cIt\u2019s ALL bad\u201d), jumping to conclusions (\u201cThey think I\u2019m a loser\u201d), and \u201cshould\u201d statements (\u201cI should have learned it by now\u201d).<\/p>\n

4. Outsmart the Brain<\/strong><\/p>\n

In her insightful book, \u201cFreeing Your Child From Negative Thinking,\u201d<\/a> Tamar Chansky explains how, with some exercising, you can outsmart your brain. She explains:<\/p>\n

The brain has two sides, which respond to very different input. When we are afraid or confronted with a negative situation, circuits in our right prefrontal cortex are firing away, whereas in more positive situations the action is in the left brain. The left prefrontal cortex is active when there is something safe to approach, whereas when the right side is buzzing, as with anxiety or negative thoughts, we avoid or don\u2019t approach. The goal is to create passageways, a bridge over troubled water \u2026 to travel from one side of the brain to the other. The more [you] practice switching perspectives, the more automatic that action will become, and overtime, [the] brain will learn to switch on its own.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

5. Eat Mood Boosters<\/strong><\/p>\n

Just as certain foods and drinks can lead to depression\u2014processed white flour, sweets, caffeine, sodas\u2014others actually lift your mood. Many studies have shown that omega-3 fatty acids are mood lifting agents that can alleviate depression. Some foods that are rich in omega-3: oily fish like salmon, mackerel and sardines; ground flaxseeds, walnuts, and omega-3 fortified eggs. Vitamin B 12 and Folate are also important for mood. Some scientists believe that these vitamins create serotonin, which normalizes mood. Vitamin D also increases serotonin and can be especially helpful with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Milk and soy milk are full of Vitamin D, as are egg yolks and fish with bones.<\/p>\n

6. Quit the Booze<\/strong><\/p>\n

There is one beverage that you must absolutely stay clear of: booze<\/em>. Not only is it going to worsen your depression and anxiety, but it can actually alter your brain during the teenage years, making needless work for you later on in life. Mondimore writes:<\/p>\n

Substance abuse in young people is thought to interfere with the brain\u2019s developmental process and may disrupt brain development in permanent ways that, currently, we can only guess at\u2026.For individuals undergoing treatment for mood disorders, getting intoxicated interferes with the therapeutic process to relieve depression or to stabilize mood. A simple way of thinking about this is that getting intoxicated depletes the chemicals that antidepressants are trying to boost.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

7. Sweat<\/strong><\/p>\n

Working out your distress quite literally–by running, swimming, walking, or kick-boxing–is going to give you immediate relief. On a physiological level<\/em>. Because exercise increases the activity of serotonin and\/or norepinehrine and stimulates brain chemicals that foster growth of nerve cells. In fact, some recent studies have suggested that regular exercise can be just as effective as antidepressants to lift a mood. And emotionally<\/em>. Because by wearing a stylish sweat suit and sneakers we become the sergeant with a whistle, taking charge of our health and giving orders to our mind and body, even if our limbic system, tummies, and thighs are in sorry shape and curse us for forcing them to move or do a sit-up.<\/p>\n

8. Ask For Help<\/strong><\/p>\n

The smartest thing I ever did in high school was ask for help from a kind teacher that I respected. This first step began a path of recovery for me that changed my life. Sometimes it\u2019s easier to approach someone outside your family because a parent wants to believe everything is fine and might not be able to face real problems. I urge you to get the help you need by asking an adult that you know won\u2019t judge you but will guide you toward the appropriate resources.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Teenagers are moody. Absolutely. Fluctuations in hormones cause angry outbursts, irritability, emotional hysteria, defiant behavior, and weepiness. So it\u2019s very difficult to tease apart teenage drama from legitimate depression and other mood disorders. However, it\u2019s worth the effort because depression and other mood disorders that begin in adolescence often become much more serious and difficult…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-depression"],"yoast_head":"\n8 Depression Busters for Teens - Beyond Blue<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/Health\/Emotional-Health\/8-Depression-Busters-for-Teens.aspx\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"8 Depression Busters for Teens - Beyond Blue\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Teenagers are moody. Absolutely. Fluctuations in hormones cause angry outbursts, irritability, emotional hysteria, defiant behavior, and weepiness. So it\u2019s very difficult to tease apart teenage drama from legitimate depression and other mood disorders. 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