Helping Your Depressed Teenager. A Guide for Parents and Caregivers

Helping Your Depressed Teenager.

A Guide for Parents and Caregivers

Gerald D. Oster, Sarah S. Montgomery
John Wiley & Sons Canada, Ltd, 5353 Dundas St W, 4th Floor, Etobicoke, ON M9B 6H8
1995/184 pp

Strengths

Very informative, logical presentation, useful bibliography and resource list

Weaknesses

Support groups mostly in the United States

Adolescents are not just “big children” or “little adults.” They represent a separate stage in the transition from infancy to old age. The authors have written an informative guide on the teenage years to help parents and caregivers understand the normal and abnormal transitional stages and emotional experiences of adolescents. They identify the feelings and symptoms of clinical depression, as distinct from the “ups and downs” that we take for granted in this age group. Signs and symptoms of suicidal thoughts and actions are given and what treatment approaches to take. Overall, the emphasis in this handbook is for parents to listen to, understand, communicate with, and take their teenagers seriously.

Most material is presented logically, with case studies and tables describing danger signs of depression, as well as guidelines on how to talk to teenagers. Key points are highlighted at the end of each chapter. Information is given on the indications and use of antidepressant medication, available therapies and how to access them, and the need for and process of hospitalization. An appendix provides resources for parents with depressed and suicidal adolescents and a useful bibliography of books and pamphlets for parents and caregivers.

The preface states, “most parents have the opportunity to watch their teens successfully move through the adolescent years without extended emotional upheaval.” It also states that the book is directed toward parents of a distinct “subgroup of teens who do suffer from clinical depression.” Although the book is directed to this particular group, it provides some excellent general insights into teenage developmental tasks in general.

Support organizations and groups, however, are relevant largely in the United States. Nevertheless, a better understanding can be gained, especially by parents, about the very real existence of depression in teenagers, how to recognize it, and how to react to it.

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