Feeling depressed? Help to talk to your parents - Tips for teens
We all have days on which we just feel down. Not in the mood for anything or anybody. Just staying in bed with some comfort food and movies. Indulging your feelings and just taking a moment to try and not think about anything and cut yourself off from the world around you.
There is nothing wrong with that, all of us can have an off day, but feeling like that every day and you do not want to get out of bed, have a feeling that you do not want to live or face the world, can be a sign of depression for which you will need professional help.
Get yourself in the right mindset to speak to your parents
It is not easy to always speak to your parents and even if we feel they do not understand us, you need to remember that your parents have a lot more life experience than you and will have answers for many things where you can just see the problem with no solution.
You may be scared that your parents will be disappointed in you or mad at you, but most parents will listen and are understanding and will also be able to help you look at problems from a different perspective.
If your parents asks you if something is bothering you, do not shut down and just say No, nothing, use it as a starting point for a conversation with them.
Get a way to start a conversation
Not all people are good at talking about there feelings and if you cannot go straight to your parents and just tell them how you feel, you can write them a letter in which you explain that you have not been feeling yourself and you need help.
If it happens that you are upset or crying and your parents approach you, calm down and start a conversation with them. Be honest about your feeling that they can help you before everything spins out of control.
I do not know what is going on with me and I just want to fight with my parents
Feeling depressed and out of control can be the reason that you are always on the attack. Instead of talking about your feeling you can be disrespectful and defensive.
It is getting more and more difficult to speak to your parents since you feel you are drifting away from them. You will have to start by apologizing to them and then in a calm manner explain to them how you have been feeling and that you think you need help.
If you show your parent that you can act in a mature, calm way they will also be more open to listen to you without fighting.
What happens after the conversation start?
Once you start talking to your parents, you will feel relieved and in most cases it will be easy to say what you have been hiding from then.
But it can also be difficult to explain your feelings and you will have to think hard and find words to explain to them how you feel, that they can get a clear picture of this and not just see it as a "teenage phase".
You can either feel depressed about something specific or it can be a general feeling of feeling lost and without hope. You will have to explain this to your parents. If it is a specific incident that happened that is making you feel this way, your parents will most probably be able to give you some advice on how to make it better or solve the problem.
My parents do not have a solution. What now?
It can happen that after listening to your story, your parents also do not know what to do or how to make you feel better. In this case you need to speak to a professional that can also advise on medication if that would be necessary.
If it turn out that your parent are not willing or able to help you or do not want to send you to a professional, you need to find another adult to talk to or your school counselor. Many times just talking about your problems and knowing that somebody cares about you will make you feel better.
Depression can come in many forms and it can be from a feeling that will go away in time to something that you will need help with or even medication.
The most important thing is not to keep your feelings bottled up and even if it feels very difficult to talk about it, you will see once you start talking about it, you will feel better.
A few sign of depression can be the following
Sadness or hopelessness.Irritability, anger, or hostility.Frequent crying or having the feeling you want to cry.Withdrawal from friends and family.Loss of interest in activities.Poor school performance.Changes in eating and sleeping habits.You can read more about teenage depression here.
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If you are a parent and reading this post, you would want to look out for these symptoms and also read some extra information
