There are some crucial things that parents must keep in mind if they suspect that their teenager is suffering from Depression. Below is a list of teenage depression signs that a parent should look for-

o Tearfulness
o Loss of interest
o Weight loss or gain
o Inability to get to sleep, or the desire to sleep all the time
o Loss of energy or initiative
o Feelings of worthlessness or guilt
o Inability to concentrate or sustain attention
o Irritability
o Feelings of emptiness and hopelessness
o Thoughts of Suicide

Tearfulness
Depression may lead to sudden tearfulness without an apparent trigger. This is usually due to the negative thoughts of a sufferer.

Loss of interest
When a teen is depressed, he/she starts to loose interest in activities he/she had previously enjoyed. When your teen no longer want to carry on with the regular day-to-day routine, well that should raise a red flag.

Weight loss or gain
Depression and weight gain/loss frequently co-occur. It becomes a vicious cycle when you eat out of boredom, loneliness, isolation or any number of emotional reasons and you gain weight. It can also occur vice versa, when a teen gets so depressed that eating becomes something that is not of his/her interest any longer.

Inability to get to sleep, or the desire to sleep all the time
Difficulty getting off to sleep occurs often because of too much thoughts going round in a teen’s head and may also cause the frequently waking up during the night. While part of the teenage depression signs is the lack of sleep, teens with depression may also sleep too much, finding it hard to get out of bed and spending much of the day there, causing tiredness and more negative depressing thoughts.

Loss of energy or initiative
In many cases, due to the lack of sleep and descent rest, teens go on through out the rest of the day feeling tire and depressed. As a result, no energy is available for them to take the initiative in carrying out normal day-to-day activities

Feelings of worthlessness or guilt
When teenagers suffering from depression, they may unfairly criticize themselves and feel unable to do anything right. This may be associated with crying spells and difficulties concentrating on or completing a task.

Inability to concentrate or sustain attention
Depression can change the way a person feels, thinks, and behaves. As a result, these long period of sad and loss of interest can cause a teen start losing focus even on simple daily activities.

Irritability
While we all get irritable from time to time, it is important that if your teen just starts to get irritable for no apparent cause or reason, then this is a signs or symptom of depression. This should be noticeable because it will occur as a sudden change in a teen’s behavior and speech. Short temperedness and agitation are all caused by this irritability that points to depression.

Feelings of emptiness and hopelessness
Part of the teenage depression signs is the feeling of hopelessness and emptiness, which usually comes when a teen has given up, and finding a positive outlook on any endeavor seems to be a challenge. This can prove to be a challenge because this negative feeling can cause a hindrance on the effectiveness of any help that he or she might receive.

Thoughts of Suicide
Sad to say however, but when you notice this, then note to yourself that your teen has reached the end of the cycle of the symptoms of depression. If your teen has gotten to this stage, then it is time to take drastic action. That teen really needs medical help, therapies, medicine, love and support of friend and family.

Just remember that the teenage depression signs above are not only found in teen but can also occur in depressed adults as well.

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