UNDERSTANDING DEPRESSION

• Depression is more than just feeling sad and can be very difficult to work through. It feels very out of control to the teen and although there are ways to feel better, it is often very difficult to see those options from the bottom of a “dark pit.” Teenager’s feelings are very real and should not be minimized, if they could just “get over it,” they would. Risk of suicide exists if the adolescent cannot see any other options and all talk of suicide should be taken seriously.
  

• There are three key ingredients to battling feelings of depression. Each influences the other two:

1. Feelings & Emotions

• How you feel affects how you think and how you act and vice versa.
  

• When you are depressed you tend to see things negatively, you get frustrated and angry easily. When you feel better you may find that your anger decreases and you are able to tolerate more from others.
  

• It is difficult to directly change how you feel. It is easier to attack those feelings indirectly by changing how you think and how you act.

2. Thoughts:

• The way that you think about situations dramatically affects how you feel and how you feel affects how you think.

• Automatic thoughts: The problem is that many of our thoughts have become so automatic that we do not realize that we are thinking at all. It is important that you become aware of those thoughts. They frequently contain messages that we received from childhood (e.g. you are stupid, fat ugly, can’t do anything right, etc.) and global beliefs about ourselves that influence how we feel.

• Interpretation of situations: The interpretation that we apply to situations is crucial. For example, if you were standing in front of a lion, you’d feel fear but riding a roller coaster, you’d feel excitement. In both situations, the physical reactions (heart racing, shallow breathing, hands sweating, etc.) were the same only your interpretation of the situation differs.

• Concentration: Depression also affects your ability to concentrate.

3. Actions and Behaviours:

• Your actions and behaviours also affect how you feel and how you feel affects your choice of behaviours.

• Behaviour changes-negative: When you feel depressed you tend to start avoiding doing activities and seeing people that you would normally find enjoyable because you “just don’t feel like it.” However, that is the worst thing to do because the end result will be that you feel worse.

• Behaviour changes-positive: It is also important to examine how certain situations make you feel. For example, whenever you spend time with a certain person you find you feel worse about yourself. If you no longer associate with that person you may feel better or you could change the way you think in those situations if you cannot avoid them. Also increasing your pleasant activities will increase your mood. (Once you get there, you will likely have fun.)

• Anger and frustration: Another common action when you are depressed is to become quickly frustrated and to get angry easily, and frequently at the people who are important to you or are trying to help.

For help with depression contact 
the Teen Health Centre at (519) 253-8481
and ask to speak to a counsellor