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Clinical Depression In Teens

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“Recent surveys indicate that as many as one in five teens suffers from clinical depression” ("Depression In Teens"). These statistics are extremely high. What makes this concerning is that a majority of the time it is impossible to tell, meaning there is a possibility that there are more people than studies show suffering in silence. America's parents and educators need to be more informed of the signs of depression, self harm, and suicide in students and high risk populations in order to help find ways to improve our mental health system.
Depression is a mental illness faced by millions of people every day. People can try to help as much as they can, but sometimes it does not do much, and they become depressed anyway ("Depression In Teens”). …show more content…

“Today’s teens see more of what life has to offer — both good and bad — on television, at school, in magazines and on the Internet” (“Depression in Teens”). When teenagers see how negative life can get, it sometimes makes them feel as though they cannot get out of their situations. Because of television, literature, and music, they have the opportunity to be exposed to the good of life as well. “Adjusting to the rigors of middle and high school as well as hormonal changes are certainly contributing factor” (Abbondanza). Depression can affect hormones, emotions, and even thoughts. It can be dangerous to the person struggling, especially if they are not receiving help. “Adolescence is always an unsettling time, with the many physical, emotional, psychological and social changes that accompany this stage of life” (“Depression in Teens”). Many adults today would say that their teenage years were some of the most difficult times of their lives and that they would not go back to them if they were given the opportunity. Although a lot is still the same, one big change in the teenage world is social media. With things like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat, teenagers today are more connected than ever. Even though this can be a wonderful thing, it can have unfavorable effects. “Those who log on, particularly during night time, are highly 'emotionally invested' and therefore are susceptible to suffering from low self-esteem, anxiety …show more content…

On the HealthyPlace website, they say, “Frequently, untreated depression and other mental health challenges create an environment of despair that leads people to cope with these challenges in unhealthy ways.” Girls are more likely to deal with these issues than girls, as their depression can lead them to self destructive behavior (Abbondanza). This does not mean that males do not self-harm. A HealthyPlace study has shown that 1 in 7 guys and 1 in 5 girls self-harm. In addition, “Females comprise 60 percent of those who engage in self injurious behavior” (“Self Injury, Self”). These statistics are way too high and something needs to be done about it. Many people hide the fact that they harm themselves, meaning these statistics are only of those shown to be dealing with it. There are likely to be many more teenagers hurting themselves than we know because it is not being reported. Even so, there are roughly two million self-harming cases reported yearly (“Self Injury, Self”). One thing that educators and parents should take note of is that it has been shown that self-injury is more likely in developing countries, such as the United States and some European countries (“Self Harm, Self”). Because people in developed countries are not in survival mode, they can feel the luxury of self-harm. They have most of what they need to survive, and because of that, their attention is not being focused on being

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