How to Help Your Teen With Depression and Suicidal Ideation

Teenage depression is a very common state that nearly 75% of teens go through within their high school journey. The key is to deal with it, and limit it to a point where it does not go back. This article will offer tips to help your teen appreciate life and everything it has to give.

Steps

1. Have an open heart-to-heart conversation with your teen, making him or her open up to you.
2. get rid of the FUD factors (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt).
3. Make sure your teen understands that being popular does not equate being liked.
4. Allow them to spread sun-shine wherever they go!
5. Win their hearts, with 10 words or less (an expanded thank you!).
6. Give a strong shoulder and a big ear.
7. Make sure they know you just want them to be happy.
8. Actions speak louder than words.
9. Use the words "I LOVE YOU" lavishly, but only when you mean it.
10. Make sure your teens appreciate diversity.

Tips

• Do not stress on everything and add more fuel to the fire.
• Open your heart, listen, and understand everything your teens have to say.
• Camping trips really help! Pack your bags, and go on a family wild trip.
• If you know someone who is dealing with depression, don't ignore it. Help them out. It will do them better in life and make you feel better about helping people out.
• If your trying to help a person who is born with depression which is very common to babies now, their is nothing you can do but be by their side. Talk about happy things that happened to them or to you. Make them smile:)
• If the depression gets worse and they start to think about suicide, then don't try to act like their own therapist. Get some help from a hotline. Hotline is a group of people who help people out all around the world with problems like these. They do this for a LIVING you don't.

Warnings

• If things go out out of hand, seek professional help.
• Do not shout, as it never works. Teens with depression are waiting to hear from someone who loves them.
• Make sure you see the signs before your teens attempt to take their own lives, for example:
  
  • Were straight "A" students for many years, but no longer interested in their studies
  • Do just about everything without complaining (this should be an abrupt change from prior state)
  • Become very quiet, having very little to say
  • May have a sudden request ("can you stay home tonight") that you're quick to dismiss. Please listen to this! Your teens have reached a last chance to change their mind.
  • Have just experience a recent lost, e.g. parental separation, long time friend moves, death of loved one.
• If you have observed your teens and see any of the above, intervene immediately.

Things You'll Need

• An open and understanding heart
• Patience
• Willingness to be supportive

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Help Your Teen With Depression and Suicidal Ideation. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.