Jack had been diagnosed with severe depression, and he said: "I've always felt like I was less important than everybody else, I think this stems from having an abusive older brother and a father who seems disgusted by the sight of me most of the time." A negative or stressful situation at home can cause depression in teens, especially if they are being abused. Whether is be verbally, physically, or sexually, abuse can hurt anyone, and can deepen feelings of sadness and worthlessness. Also, having a parent that does not support a teen can cause these feelings, because they feel like a failure.
Bullying can play a huge part in adolescent depression. A young girl named Diana*, who had been bullied all throughout middle school based on her physical appearance said this to her friend in an instant message: "Everyone I've ever liked has always rejected me for reasons of 'God, you are so ugly' or 'I'd never go out with you.'" These kinds of words can be extremely hurtful to teenagers who really just want to fit in. Many teens crave to be accepted by their peers, so when they are bullied about their appearance, interests, or opinions it can be devastating. In Diana's case, the bullying led to her committing suicide, because she could not handle the disapproval from her classmates.
If you feel like letting go, (hold on) When you think you've had too much of this life, well hang on.
Depression is a debilitating disorder, that causes extreme sadness and loss of interest for thousands of teens in the United States. Through all of the feelings of worthlessness, hopelessness and guilt, it is important for teens to hold on, and not lose something as precious as their life by committing suicide. There are all kinds of resources for teens battling this illness, such as therapists, programs, medications, and even just talking about their feelings with a trusted adult or person close to them. "Everybody Hurts" by R.E. M. describes that even when giving up seems like the easiest thing, it is so important to not give up, because there is so much more to life if a person can get past their depression.
Jeanine committed suicide at the age of seventeen, and her mother remembers the day like it was yesterday.
"After about forty five minutes I thought she had probably calmed down and I had better go in and see how she was. Her door was closed. When I opened the door I found her hanging there. At that point it was like a dream. It was such a shock. I screamed and screamed. She hanged herself from a curtain rod with an exercise rope. It was like I was in a dream world. I felt shame. It was an intense sense of shame. And there was a sense of relief. It is okay to say that now. And then I was ashamed of that relief sense. All these feelings that washed over me were unbelievable" (11).
The reason Jeanine killed herself was that she could not handle her imperfections. She constantly wanted to please her parents, because they expected so much from her. They never told her that it was okay if she was not perfect all the time. Her parents seemed to know that something was wrong, but they never properly helped her. Untreated depression often leads teens to think about taking their life, and in Jeanine's case, that is exactly what happened. Depression and suicide not only affect the person experiencing it, but everyone else around them as well.
“When I was thirteen, I was raped by my neighbor who was a few years older than me. The experience left me in a state of depression. I hated myself and I had no self confidence. I felt guilty, thinking maybe if I hadn’t hung out with him, it wouldn’t have happened. I completely lost respect for myself and started cutting and burning my hands. I finally talked to my mom and people close to me, and I got help. Ever since receiving help, I feel like a new person and have gained more confidence. I still think about the incident every once and a while, but I’ve learned to accept it and move on."
Brittany's experience is typical of a rape victim. Many blame themselves and lose respect for themselves. That kind of violation causes many people to fall into depression, meaning that they lsoe interest in normal activities, are constantly sad, and sometimes even self-harm. Brittany turned to cutting and burning at first, but then realized that she was hurting herself, causing her to talk with her mother and other family members. Support from people in the victim's life can really have an affect on whether they can get better.
In The Virgin Suicides, Cecilia Lisbon, the youngest of five sisters, tries to kill herself. It is evident in the previous scenes that she is unhappy, and after her attempted suicide, her parents get her help from a therapist. Eventually, Cecilia jumps out of her window, falling to her death. The remainder of the movie shows the other four girls trying to cope with her death, as well as live their lives under their parents strict rules. The Lisbon parents make their rules even stricter when one of the girls, Lux, stays out all night with a boy. They are then unable to leave their house, even for school, and kept in complete isolation from the rest of the world. This then drives the four girls, Lux, Bonnie, Mary, and Therese, to make a suicide pact, and they all kill themselves on the same night.
In the video above, a therapist is talking to Cecilia, and he says, "...you're not even old enough to know how bad life gets." She suggests that she knows how bad life gets, just from being a teenaged girl. Cecilia is so depressed going through adolescence, that taking her life seems like the only answer.
Also, later in the movie, when Lux appears to be rebelling against her parents' strict rules, her actions could be confused with depression. Parents often mistake depression for rebellion, and Lux could have been feeling depressed from her sisters death, or her lack or a social life. When the girls made the suicide pact, it showed how much their parents restrictions had completely ruined their lives and caused them to be depressed.
The lives of teens affected by depression are filled with sadness and hopelessness. "They see depression as a weakness and think they should be able to conquer it on their own. When they fail in their battle, they feel helpless and ashamed" (20). This means that many teens will not seek help from a family member or a professional because they think that people around them might not take it seriously, or they would get made fun of.
"Since there are not symptoms commonly associated with depression, teenage depression may be mistaken for simple rebellion and often goes undiagnosed. Many teens fall into drug or alcohol abuse in an attempt to escape from their feelings" (13). Parents or guardians may not want to believe that their child is suffering from depression, and may pass it off to be rebellion or just the way they are, to avoid coming to terms with it. Depressed teens often turn to drugs and alcohol not only to escape feelings, but to feel accepted. Although, many drugs can cause depression in teens who were not originally depressed, just because it is a side effect of the drug.
