Just a Mood Swing?
We're young, healthy, and privileged. High school is challenging, but also full of friends and social events. This is the time of our lives, and we should be carefree, right? Not right...The stress of everything from course overloads to boyfriend drama fills the hallways. Still, it's normal for teens to stress and worry and feel sad now and again. But what's not normal? There are some who seem to be hit with those "raging teenage hormones" much harder than others, and just getting through the day can be a struggle. Often dismissed as normal adolescent mood swings, depression
Affects as many as 1 in 8 people in their teen years.
It can be difficult to recognize depression, especially when there is no traumatic event, which we usually associate with depression .
Sometimes, a person may experience depression without being able to point to any particular sad or stressful event. People who have a genetic predisposition to depression may be more prone to the imbalance of neurotransmitter activity that is part of de
We are at an age where many people, including ourselves, dismiss emotions as habitual teenage angst. Still, its important to be aware of ourselves and those around us, and recognize if someone isn't just having a bad day. When a bad day seems to have turned into weeks, with other symptoms like lack of energy, irritability, inability to concentrate, and others persist, the cause is probably depression. The year is starting to wind down, and people will be facing different challenges of college rejections, fear of leaving high school, friends moving away. It's important to remember to step outside ourselves and be aware of others, and be willing to listen and empathize.
Comments
Emma, Your post was very
Emma,
Your post was very well written and caught my interest. I agree with you when you say "We are at an age where many people, including ourselves, dismiss emotions as habitual teenage angst. Still, its important to be aware of ourselves and those around us, and recognize if someone isn't just having a bad day." I have found myself being sad and in a bad mood for absolutely no reason multiple times this year and I always wondered why. I'm not saying that I have depression, but I understand what you are referring to when you write about mood swings and such running through our hallways. I also strongly agree with your last sentence, "It's important to remember to step outside ourselves and be aware of others, and be willing to listen and empathize," because if someone does have a problem, having someone listen to them just might make all the difference in the world.
Thanks for the post!
Chelsea
Emma, Your title caught my
Emma,
Your title caught my attention right away because I have never understood why different moods occur. What I really don't understand is why they seem to happen without any reason. When you put in the quote "Sometimes, a person may experience depression without being able to point to any particular sad or stressful event." I felt like I could totally relate. I don't necessarily get depressed, but there are days where I simply wake up unhappy, and nothing can change it. For absoultely no reason, I'll be unhappy. This doesn't happen to me frequently, but I have seen kids, girls especially, our age who seem to be unhappy every single day. We as girls usually just think "pms-ing" but when someone is unhappy and moody for weeks it's got to be something more serious. I never think it could be something serious like depression.
You should expand more on the topic of depression.
Alyssa
Emma- This is a situation I
Emma-
This is a situation I am all too familiar with, as you know, and am glad you have written a blog on the matter. The statistics about 1 in every 8 teenagers being depressed is suprising and frightening. While teens are often emotional, it usually just appears to be a mood that will pass and they will soon get over it. However, I have come to find that this is not always the case and sometimes teenagers truly are depressed. It's a frustrating situation for myself because I feel helpless in my attempts to help others get through tough times, but I have also learned it is something that can't be fixed with outside help. It is a personal battle which the person facing depression must conquer on their own and all I can do is just constantly remind and reassure them that I am there. I have also found listening to be the best way to even attempt to help. It's true when you say, It's important to remember to step outside ourselves and be aware of others, and be willing to listen and empathize. We need to be sefless and stop worrying so much about ourselves because whether we like it or not, your classmates are basically your family. Most the time we can't stand each other but we have been through a lot together and have spent the past four years of our lives with one another. We have to look out for each other. Besides, living a life where you just focus on yourself I believe is a waste, and I can't stand it when people are so passive and refuse to help. I can elaborate further, but you pretty much have heard it all before.
Thanks for this post, I enjoyed giving my input on it and feel strongly about what you have said.
Katie