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I really don't know how to answer...
In some ways...sure it sounds good to screen adolescents but at the same time...it seems a possible invasion of privacy...what if the screening is not accurate? And how will the teen-ager feel about this screening?
Very interesting topic...it will be interesting to hear what others have to say.
As a teenager it might have been useful to be diagnosed with depression... well technically I was: it was first suggested to me at 16 and diagnosed at 17 (nearly 18). But I was also very good at hiding it. Certainly if I had been 'screened' before then I would have hid it well and would have exited with the results that I was perfectly healthy. Any tests were always to be passed, regardless of whether a negative outcome would mean my getting help. That's just my personality.
As it was when it was suggested to me by my head of year teacher that I suffered from depression I was angry. Angry that someone would label me, angry that someone thought they knew something about me that I did not, angry that someone would in effect call me crazy, and angry that people had been talking about me behind my back (in my case it came about due to supposed 'friends' telling my head of teacher about my talks on the topic of suicide and my teachers noting my drop in marks and increasingly sullen behaviour). However also in my case the idea was simply suggested to me and dropped. It was left up to me to do something and so of course I did nothing (hence it taking till I was almost 18 before I was actually properly diagnosed by a doctor - after screwing up at school and having a breakdown when I tried to start work).
I guess what I'm saying is it depends on exactly how it's done. If everyone was simply talked to, perhaps whilst doing some other task like painting or throwing a ball around (depending on the personality of the individual you are talking to) then the truth could be picked up by professionals. And then if medications weren't simply pushed on the teenagers but other avenues were explored first and everyone was taken on a case by case standard (which unfortunately doesn't happen anywhere near enough in the mental health system in my experience) then the teenagers in question could be helped and I would agree it's a good idea. But any deviation from that could just end up in people being judged or hiding the truth or ending up with the wrong treatment thus making them worse like that first poor girl in your post.
I definately think children & teens should be screened for mental illness - but first, our youth need to know more about this subject and any stigma + taboos must be removed. All children should know that depression or mental illness can happen to anyone and there's nothing bad about those affected. They should know what they are; they should know how to read the signs and know what to do when they notice them in themselves or their friends.
At 9 years old, I was a very unhappy child. I would say I wished to kill myself; I had a really bad temper; and I would frequently pack up my stuff and threaten to leave home. I was sent to see the school social worker who suggested I ask someone to be my "best friend', so I did. Once I had a friend, that was the end of my follow-up. At age 13, my mom sent me to see a child psychiatrist. The consultations with psychiatrist were very good for me. I was forbidden to talk about these appointments with ANYBODY. Unfortunately, the fact that I was told there was nothing wrong with asking for help but telling others would have very negative effects, creates this feeling in the pit of my stomach every time I have to open up to any family, friends, or peers.
Medication was never proposed; we would simply sit on the floor playing a game and talk. After 1 year, she relocated to the other end of the world (literally) and that was the end of it until I had moved away from home and finally decided to do something about it.
I guess my message is that teens do need to be screened and consulting can be helpful, when it is sustained. Had the school social worker kept seeing me regularly, had the psychiatrist not moved away (or had my care been transferred to someone else when she did)- perhaps the severity and quantity of mental illnesses I have been battling with for the past years, would have been reduced. There is no way to know, but I am a firm believer to teaching kids it's okay to need help; that it is okay to ask for help; and being able to ask for that help (whatever kind of help it may be) is a really important quality that will be immensely beneficial for the rest of their lives. We should encourage our kids, not discourage. I strongly believe that education is key.
Dear Angst: Please see BLUE WAVE's (BW) response to the comment above. We couldn't pass over your excellent, candid comments without responding. Thank you so much for your honesty and willingness to share, for the benefit of others. No-one can speak so passionately and with such clarity as one, like yourself, who is "walking the walk". Your perceptions, looking back over your own journey so far, hold much insight which cannot be ignored.
BW very much takes on board and notes your comments. As stated to the writer above (and those comments would also be for you, as an encouragement), BW believes that the young people everywhere will be the ones to drive the movement for removal of stigma and provide some of the building blocks of required change in present day approaches to mental health issues amongst youth.
Thank you again for taking such a pro-active stance and sharing your heart. BW trusts you will go from strength to strength in all that life holds for you.
Kindest regards
Margaret
Margaret Lee
Hi ,
I am an anonomoss 12 year old , nearly 13 in Sep.
My parents have recently split and my cat has also been put down.
My mother wants me to see a woman in the I.S.P.C.C (Irish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children). But I feel they are getting nowhere on helping me , sure she offers games , art and some fun but as soon as I come out of that building I feel the same as ever before , like there is nothing , no feelings. If I hurt someone emosinaly , it will be because I do everything in a dase , I feel like I'm not me. I just mope around. I used to help out ALOT around the house but now I barely lift a finger.
Can you help ?
From Anon (anonomoss )
xxx
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Hi
I know a preteen who has depression.
She is sullen most of the time.
She denies depression.
Jon