Researchers say that many parents and teachers nowadays have no clue if a teenager is suffering from depression if they are not aware of what sign to look for. That's because a lot of young people mask their depression with cryptic language.
A research conducted at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine and College of Nursing said that young people at risk of or already experiencing depression seldom give direct clues about their condition. Instead of saying they are depressed, they would often describe it a 'bursts of feeling stressed' or feelings of sadness that often come and go.
Daniela DeFrino, the lead researcher, said that her team conducted in-depth interviews with 369 teenagers who used words, such as become angry or irritable, lose interest in the things they used to do, or have trouble sleeping.
Two of the most common causes of depression based on the interviews were expectations of success and too much school homework. Those who reported that their condition worsened often experienced verbal, emotional, and sexual abuse as well as neglect, separation, parent divorce, and argument with their parents.
Two-thirds of the interviewees reported physical manifestations of depression, such as migraine, pain, fatigue, ulcers, and stomach aches.
DeFrino advised medical providers to be aware when checking on the health of the child. She added that depression symptoms are often overlooked if doctors and other health providers do not know how to ask sensitive and probing questions.
According to the statistics from the Jason Foundation, there are 5,240 suicide attempts every day committed by young people between Grades 7 - 12. Depression is the leading cause of suicide among teens and many who were admitted performed self-harm and have thoughts of suicide.
The study shows that doctors and other health professionals need to be more vigilant even when dealing with stressful conditions.
