Adolescent Depression: Not a Laughing Matter

"Each year as many as 8.3 percent of the adolescent population will begin exhibiting signs of depression. "
"More teenagers die each year from suicide than from all other illnesses—from cancer to AIDS—combined. "
"According to the CDC, each year, 1 in 5 high school students in the United States has thoughts of suicide. "
"Each year, over 2 million high school students in the United States make specific suicide plans."
"Each year, some 400,000 high school students in the United States make suicide attempts requiring medical attention, coming to an average of 1,000 attempts a day nationwide, every day of the year. "
-Dr. Harold S. Koplewicz

These facts and numbers are disturbing, aren't they?

Yet still I see millions of kids throw harsh words like "go kill yourself", or "go cut you wrists emo kid" like a funny joke. Whether they mean what they say or not it can still deeply impact someone's decision to live or die. This kind of prosecution can make a person ashamed of their depression, making them less likely to admit their problem and seek treatment.
There are a lot of theories about why more and more teens are getting depressed. Some say it is the society we live in that protrays an image of perfection that is immpossible to achieve. Some say the origin of your sexuality plays a part too. Bisexuals and Homosexuals are more likely to become depressed than others, because of the ridcule they recieve. Another explanation is that during adolescence, there is a burst of rapid brain maturation during a period that roughly correlates with the ages at which rates of depression increase markedly, this maturation may explain why adolescents are more susceptable to depression than other age groups.

"Girls are twice as likely as boys to attempt suicide, but boys are ten times more likely to die "
"Overall, only 1 in 5 depressed teens gets psychiatric treatment, and those who are untreated are likely to experience a recurrence of their depression. "
-Dr. Harold S. Koplewicz

Some do not know the horror and pain of someone who is depressed, but as for my self I do, from personal expirence.
I was depressed for several years of my adolscence, and to tell the truth, I just broke out of it within the last year. With the ridcule I had seen others go through, I denied my depression, and bottled it all inside for years. When I finally expressed my depression it was in harmful self-inflicted ways. As far as stereotypes go I was considered a "Cutter". For a year I kept it a secret, but one day in gym class a girl saw and went to the Nurse about what she had seen, but the Nurse wasn't all who she decided to tell. It was my most ashamed moment in my life. I endured rude comments from most everybody. Some such as " Go get a scapel and cut yourself", "Just kill yourself already", and "Down the road not across the street". I can honestly say I cried most everyday for years. I was in and out the guidance counciler's office, hospitals, and went through Therapists like pencils. No one ever tried to understand, most treated me like I was diseased. My family was ashamed of me, I expirenced rooms going silent when I entered more than I can count on my fingers and toes. I tried all sorts of medications, but none semed to work. In 2006, I got sent to another hospital where they diagnosed me with Manic-Depression (Bi-Polar disorder). The doctor put me on the highest dosage of Effexor XR when I was 15 years old, but months later I made the decision to take myself off the medication. I can successfully say I did it, I haven't cut in almost a year, but not without hours upon hours of therapy. My past still haunts me, such as the scars that line my forearms. I also cannot donate blood for another three months. I am no longer ashamed of what I was, or what I still am. I taught myself a lot during those years.

It is sad how cruel people can be to those with mental illnesses. Sometimes one friend can make all the difference.
You could save their life.