- First of all thank you so much for writing to TeenCentral. It takes a lot when you’re feeling this dark to get up out of bed and seek help from a place online. Even if you’re just doing it from your phone I still thank you for taking that initiative. Here it TeenCentral we know a lot about depression and how hard it really is for teens who are going through it. So let’s see what we would recommend for you to do right now.
- We definitely hear in your writing that you have thoughts of suicide and wanting to end it all. That’s not surprising because severe depression does cause thoughts of suicide. So the first thing we want to do is make sure that you have access to the hotlines that you can call when you’re having those kinds of unsafe thoughts. So, if you want to talk to somebody about those thoughts the best thing to do is to call 988 on your cell phone because that is the suicide hotline. It’s available 24 hours a day seven days a week and 365 days a year. However, if you’re really thinking that you’re going to him actually do something about your thoughts…For example, you have kind of a plan in your mind of a way you might end your life and you may take steps towards doing that, then we would recommend that you call your emergency management services. In most states that means calling 911. But depending on where you live it may be another number or it might mean just calling the police. Whatever it means where you live, you need to get to the hospital as quickly as possible. In the hospital a psychiatrist will evaluate you and see if you need to be in some sort of place where they can treat you and make sure your medications are correct and that you’re safe for the time being.
- If things aren’t that imminent and you’re able to be safe in your home and in your community and your school but you’re still having these really depressed feelings, I have to ask if there’s anybody in your life that you trust enough that you could talk to. I’m talking about somebody who might be a little older than you, maybe an adult or just somebody who’s lived a little bit more life than you. Maybe even your parents if you have a good relationship with them. Maybe a guidance counselor or a youth group leader or a coach or an older cousin. These are just ideas but I’m asking if you have an older person in your life who you can trust and maybe talk to face-to-face about your feelings. This is a person who would listen to you and take you seriously. Because I really think that that’s what you need, is somebody who will really hear you. If you have none of these people in your life maybe, it’s time to talk to somebody professional like a counselor or therapist on a regular basis because that person would be unbiased and would be supportive of your situation.
COPING WITH LIFE LONG-TERM
- Depression may wax and wane. What I mean by that is that at times it may feel very overwhelming and hard to deal with and other times it may feel just like a small weight on your mind. So when it’s more under control you may be able to work on ways to cope with life and life stressors. With depression some coping skills that we would recommend are ways to express your emotions other than turning them inward on yourself.
- The most important coping skill we would recommend is journaling. There are some resources on this website that can help you get started with journaling if it’s something that you’ve not never done before I highly recommend that you look over these resources and start journaling if you’ve never done it before.
- But if writing isn’t your thing then maybe art is. You can journal in a different way by using your artistic skills. Here is a resource for you that will help you get started with our journaling.Him and
