Depression Treatment For Teens And Young Adults

Depression can affect anyone, and is particularly prevalent among young people aged 12-24. Depression treatment is vital to save lives and lost years. Once depression has been identified, most young people with depression are successfully treated. Unfortunately, depression is not always diagnosed, because many of the symptoms mimic physical illness, such as sleep and appetite disturbances. Depression in young people can also manifest with different symptoms from depression in adults. Recognizing depression is the first step in treating it.

Over 17 million American adults experience a period of clinical depression each year. As many as one in four adolescents experience a period of depression. Access to the right depression treatment can save a young person from years of struggling with low mood, irritability, and poor motivation.

Suicidal thoughts are a common symptom of depression. Depression is a psychological condition that changes how you think and feel, and also affects your social behavior and sense of physical well-being. Depression treatment will focus first on safety - controlling the environment to prevent attempts at self-harm, and then controlling the impulses which arise.

In major depression, where there are often serious intentions of suicide, medication may be used to prevent suicide attempts.

However, there are no anti-depressants which have been approved for use on adolescents. There is an arbitrary age limit of 18, after which these drugs are supposedly instantly safe. In reality, the human brain continues developing into the early 20s, and if it's not safe when you're 17 and a half, it's probably not safe when you're 18 and a half, either!

Some anti-depressants have been reported to actually increase suicidal thoughts in adolescents - although they still seem to reduce the incidence of actual attempts.

A specialist child and adolescent psychiatrist must be involved in any decision to use psychoactive medications on young people.

All suicidal thoughts must be taken seriously. If you know someone who has expressed any thoughts of self-harm, or any wish to end their life, it is very important that you seek professional help for them immediately. If you are having these thoughts yourself, pick up the phone and call a health professional today.

Depression treatment can begin in earnest once the crisis has passed, and the physical safety of the young person is assured. While medication may provide temporary relief, a long-term solution can only be found in psychological depression treatment - counselling or psychotherapy.

Psychological depression treatment provides either an alternative to medication or works alongside medication and is usually provided by a mental health professional, such as a counsellor, psychiatrist or psychologist.

In some cases, it may be useful to spend some time in a psychiatric ward or residential facility. In general, however, it is helpful to remain in a familiar environment as you begin to recover from depression. Otherwise, the transition from residential care back to home can trigger a relapse into major depression again.

Depression treatment seeks to address the underlying causes of depression. It is easy for people to fall into "bad habits" of thinking, which make them mentally ill, just as bad habits of diet and exercise can make people physically ill.

People suffering from depression often have an ongoing negative view about themselves and the world around them.  This negative way of thinking is often not confined to depression, but is an ongoing part of how the person thinks about life.  Many or all of their experiences are distorted through a negative filter and their thinking patterns become so entrenched that they don't even notice the errors of judgement caused by thinking irrationally.

Mild to moderate depression can lift, almost magically, as the person learns new habits of thinking, which are healthier.

A study published in the journal of the American Medical Association reviews two decades of anti-depressant trials of at least six weeks duration.

The conclusion reinforces conventional wisdom that anti-depressants may be of little or no benefit for people with mild or moderate symptoms.

Experts agree that "talk therapy" is the only effective cure for mild to moderate depression.

Some depression is a reaction to stressful life events. Depressive symptoms should ease within six months of the end of the stressful situation. When the stressors continue over a long period, however, the depressive symptoms may also continue over a long period.

The symptoms of reactive depression, also known as adjustment disorder, are similar to other depressive disorders, and the recommended treatment is still counselling or therapy. However, because of the relationship between the symptoms and a specific stressor, there is more emphasis put on resolving the problem that is creating the stress. This may require specific action and decision making, for example changing jobs, separating from a partner, or getting help in caring for ageing parents or disabled children.

Often people become depressed in reaction to psychosocial stressors when they don't believe a solution exists to their problem. In such cases, helping the person develop a reasonable solution is a key part of the treatment process.