Many teens struggle with depression, which can, unfortunately, lead them to thoughts or even attempts of suicide. This is why it is so important to recognize World Suicide Prevention Day as a time to cultivate awareness in your household and your community. If you have a teen in your home who is suffering from depression, it is vitally important that you review suicide prevention techniques. You do not have to struggle with the choice to seek depression treatment for your teen.
At Venture Academy, depression treatment in teens is one of the ways that we provide support. Learn more about how our team of experts can help your teen avoid becoming a statistic.
World Suicide Prevention Day
Celebrated on September tenth each year, World Suicide Prevention Day promotes awareness within the global community. Mental health disorders like depression and the debilitating symptoms of depression are not often discussed and are greatly misunderstood. But by bringing depression into the light and sharing stories and important suicide prevention techniques, the global community can gather together to expand knowledge and prevent future suicide attempts.
Suicide Prevention Techniques
If your teen is struggling with depression, there are some techniques that you can use to show your support for them. When your teen feels empowered to seek help, it can help them own their story and find healthful ways of coping with life’s stressors. This can also help them support their family, friends, and community. There are effective suicide prevention techniques that you can use to show support for your teen or to promote understanding in your community.
Some of these suicide prevention techniques include:
- Discuss depression and the symptoms of depression in the household.
- Ensure that your friends and external family members are aware of the serious consequences of depression and suicide.
- Share your story if you have been personally affected by suicide in your life.
- Know the symptoms of depression so that you can help guide loved ones and acquaintances to getting the help they need.
- Reach out to family and friends.
- Step up when someone makes an inappropriate joke about mental illness.
- Fighting the stigma around mental illness means letting people know when their words hurt you.
- Take part in community walks for suicide prevention.
- Make sure that your friends and family know about World Suicide Prevention Day.
By taking an active part in reducing teen depression and suicide, you can help your teen understand that their depression is a normal part of life. With the help of experienced professionals like those at Venture Academy, the right treatment can help your teen to work through the stigma of mental illness.
Know The Signs of Depression
If your teen lives with depression, you may not know what signs to look for to confirm that they are truly struggling. Some of the behavioural signs that could alert you to the fact that something is going wrong in your teen’s daily life include:
- Withdrawal from loved activities
- Deep sadness
- Sleep disturbances
- Shifts in personality or sudden and extreme moods
- Suicidal ideation, frequent conversations about suicide, or threats of suicide
- Reckless or dangerous behaviour
These behaviours alone may not necessarily be an indication that your teen is considering suicide. But if you see several of these behaviours in conjunction, or if your teen is engaging in frequent suicidal ideation, that is a strong indicator that they may require additional help from experienced professionals.
Seek Depression Treatment for Your Teen with Venture Academy
Depression treatment in teens can be difficult if you aren’t sure what to look for. By using the above suicide prevention techniques during World Suicide Prevention Day, you may be able to provide hope to your teen.
Call our Venture Academy team today at 866.762.2211 to offer your teen the depression treatment they desperately need and deserve. Our interactive child behaviour test can also help if you are still unsure about depression treatment for your teen. We urge you to reach out today as it may help save a life.
