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Parents of depressed teens should find immediate treatment options

By Staff Writer

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, children who experience depression typically see the illness reappear throughout their youth and adulthood if it is left untreated. Therefore, it can be important for parents to recognize the warning signs so that they can get their youths help before depression becomes a life-long problem.

Teens who are depressed may refuse to go to school, get in trouble, be very negative and irritable as well as believe that they are misunderstood. Sometimes parents mistake these signals for typical adolescent mood swings, but they should be taken seriously.

Emma Schwartz, a student at a Massachusetts high school, recently spoke about her experience with depression during a public forum on the topic, Acton's Patch website reports.

Schwartz said that as her depression took over, she saw her straight A's plummet, she lost her close circle of friends and stopped participating in extracurricular activities. She felt miserable and hopeless. Eventually, her symptoms became so bad that she spent time in the hospital.

If parents believe that their children are depressed they should research various treatment options, which may include therapeutic schools. These programs can give students the mental and emotional support they need to get their lives back on track.

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