Teen FAQ
For over 10 years, teens have been asking us questions on every topic imaginable. While we are no longer taking new questions, we have a wealth of information we would like to share with teenagers.
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Navigate: FAQ Home Page > Depression > Q&A
Posted on: 02/14/2008
Question
i don't know whether i am depressed but am too embarassed to talk about it.
Answer
Dear Teen: Depression is a lot more common than you might expect. The symptoms are ongoing sadness, lack of focus, lack of interest, fatigue, irritability, change in eating and sleeping, and often feelings of self harm. It is an illness which is very common and very treatable. The best thing to do is talk to a trusted adult such as, school teacher/counselor or family physician to get an appropriate diagnosis and help. One of these people could help you figure out how to talk about it with your parents. If you did choose to talk about it to some of your peers you would find many of them have struggled with depression as it is quite common in teen years. Check the information on our website to learn more about depression: www.pamf.org/teen/life/depression/teendepression.html