What If Your Depressed Teen Won't See a Psychologist or Psychiatrist?

Parents are often the first to recognize the presence of emotional or behavioral problems in their child's life. If you have identified symptoms of depression through this article or through others who know and have voiced concern about your teen, we strongly advise that you seek professional stigma. That is not to say that the decision to seek help is an easy one. With the negative stigma of depression, it can often be difficult and painful for parents and embarrassing for adolescents. But, we believe it is worth it.

The first step is to gentiy try to talk to your teen. An honest, open talk about your concern might help your teen to share his thoughts and feelings with you. He needs to know that you are concerned and would like to check things out for him with a professional.

Many teens are leery of seeing a "shrink." When they reject psychiatric help, it is often because they are familiar with media stereotypes of mental health professionals and the people who consult them, or because they fear appearing weak in front of peers.

See if your son would consider seeing a family doctor, nurse practitioner, or school nurse first. Some teens are willing to agree to a "check-up" of physical health (for example, to look at causes for the fatigue often associated with depression) but not to an appointment focused on mental health. A sensitive nurse or physician may be able to gradually explore mental health issues either as part of the check-up or during a follow-up visit. If your teen is hesitant about seeing his usual nurse or doctor, perhaps because of confidentiality concerns, provide some alternative names. In some communities, specialized "teen clinics" are available for adolescent health concerns as well. You could also ask the school counselor to chat with your teen about what is bothering him and, perhaps, about pursuing an appointment with a psychologist or psychiatrist.

If you cannot get your teen to see anybody, ask the professional you wanted your teen to consult whether he or she would be willing to speak to you, the parent, as a first step. Just getting an outside perspective on your child's difficulties may be helpful, and may give you additional ideas on how to get him to access help.



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