Teenage Depression

According to Young Minds, in a school of 1,000 pupils aged 14 -18, 50 of them might be

seriously depressed. As many as 1 in 5 could be affected at some time. We investigate why

more and more teenagers are suffering from mental illness.

A difficult time

Being a teenager has always been difficult. Emotions and moods change

rapidly. Many teenagers feel confused and afraid when the safety of childhood is left

behind. These days, experts say that things are even harder. Peter Wilson, the Director of Young Minds, says,

"We live in particularly difficult times for a growing youngster.There are huge cultural pressures and a lot of broken homes. Kids may have difficult relationships with parents, or in other cases, have no one to support them."

No one is happy all the time

Everyone feels unhappy, lonely or misunderstood from time to time. But a small number of teenagers become depressed for weeks or months without change, and they begin to find that they can't continue with their normal lives. Many teenagers don't want to ask, or don't

know how to ask for help. Perhaps they don't even realize they are depressed. It is

usually other people - friends, parents and teachers, who identify the symptoms of

depression and offer help. One teenager explained that after a close friend had died, "I stopped believing that anything could be any good anymore. I became very aggressive, I snapped at my parents and I lost touch with friends. Things were bad for me for a year until, fortunately for me, a teacher noticed that things were wrong."

If you recognize these symptoms in yourself or a friend, there are lots of things that can be done. You can't expect yourself, or someone else to just 'snap out of it'. You need to find ways to cope with the feelings. 

 

How to help yourself or someone else

If you are worried about a friend, listen to their problems and try to be sympathetic, and be patient. Most importantly, try and help them find help. If you're feeling blue yourself, don't panic – you need to try and understand your emotions. You are not the first person to feel like this. Try writing things down in a diary or talking to a friend. Perhaps writing a poem or song, drawing a picture or listening to music will help you express and understand your

emotions. But most importantly of all, do something you enjoy, whether it's watching TV, playing sport or just going for a walk.

Talk to someone

It is a good idea for teenagers who feel depressed to try and talk to someone they like and feel comfortable with. But if they don't want to talk to friends and family, there are lots of people who are there to help. They could talk to their teacher or school nurse or maybe their doctor. Alternatively, there are telephone help lines which give confidential help to anyone with a problem. Talking to someone might help others to cope with how they are feeling.

There is someone who can help

Sometimes, depression can become a very serious problem, and teenagers think about trying to escape their feelings. They might consider suicide or self injury. When the problem has got so bad, professional help from qualified specialist counselors is vital. Counselors are trained to talk to people about their worries and problems. It is important to remember that everyone feels sad and unhappy sometimes, it is natural. Remember that, no matter how

bad you feel, the feelings of sadness and happiness will come to an end. 

1) Pupils = students                                                  16) Notice = see = pay attention

2) Suffering = menderita                                          17) Recognize = know = mengenali

3) Rapidly = quickly                                                  18) Expect = hope

4) Expert = ahli                                                           19) Snap out of it = menghibur

5) Particulary = especially                                       20) Cope = akur

6) Huge = big X small                                                21) Blue = sad = sedih

7) Cultural pressure = tekanan budaya               22) Poem = puice

8) Youngster = anak muda                                      23) Whether = apakah

9) Change = perubahan                                           24) Nurse = perawat

10) Perhaps = maybe = probably                           25) Confidential = secret

11) Identify = mengenali                                           26) Escape = run away

12) Symptoms = gejala                                             27) Suicide = bunuh diri

13) Snap = tidak Akur                                               28) Self injury = menyakiti diri sendiri

14) Lost Touch = hilang komunikasi                    29) Vital = important = essential

15) Fortunately = untungnya                                  30) No matter how = seberapa

1. Broken home                    (C)                            a. harm that you do to yourself deliberately

2. To snap at someone        (H)                             b. to recover quickly

3. To lose touch                    (E)                             c. a family where the parents have separated

4. To snap out of it               (B)                              d. to deal successfully with a situation

5. To cope                            (D)                              e. to lose contact

6. Blue                                  ( I )                               f. a telephone advice service

7. Help line                           (F)                              g. a person professionally trained to talk to

             people about their problems

8. Self-injury                        (A)                               h. to speak to someone angrily

9. Counselor                        (G)                                i. Unhappy (informal)

2. Comprehension

According to the text, are the following sentences true or false? (Circle 'T' for true and an 'F'

for false next to each sentence.)

1. Teenagers don't want to become adults. T / F (Answer False )

2. Teenagers often don’t know how to get helps with their depression. T / F (Answer True)

3. Other people are usually the first to see that you are depressed. T / F (Answer True)

4. A common symptom of teenage behavior is moody behavior. T / F (Answer True)

5. It is easy to recover quickly from serious depression. T / F (Answer False )

6. Talking to a person who is depressed is a good way to help. T / F (Answer True)

7. Telephone help lines are a private way to talk about your problems. T / F (Answer True)

8. Anyone can be counselor. T / F (Answer False )

9. Everyone feels miserable sometimes. T / F (Answer True)