Depression. It's a serious illness, but also one of the most common ones out there. Everyone will at some point in his or her life be affected by depression, either their own or someone else's, according to Australian Government statistics (depression statistics in Australia are comparable to those of the US and UK). It's the kind of illness you can't always see; a person may seem happy when you are talking to them, even after knowing them for a while, but depression is something most people keep swept well under the rug from many people in their lives.
Sometimes depression doesn't affect an individual 24/7, but is triggered by an incident that recently happened, which can lead to breakdowns and often suicidal thoughts and actions. These types of things are often kept private by the victim, so it's hard to know if someone you know or if a loved one has depression. If you haven't noticed anything major, there might be underlying issues and incidents you don't know about, and the best way to find out is by sitting down and talking with them. Ask how he or she is doing -- but be aware, most people will say they are just fine at first, but you need to dig a little deeper. People with depression need someone to talk to about it, and will eventually open up and appreciatively talk about it with a concerned friend or loved one.
Another way to tell if your son or daughter may be suffering from depression is by spotting scars from cutting. For those who don't know, cutting has become almost a fad for depressed kids and teens. By cutting their wrists or other parts of their body, they are supposedly taking away the emotional pain by replacing it with a distraction of physical pain. But for the most part, kids get this idea of cutting from peers and movies and such, or do it to get attention, label themselves "emo," or just to get noticed as being depressed by someone, which in that case it's a desperate cry for help and attention to their feelings. If you notice scars on your kids' wrists, arms, or legs, or they're constantly wearing long sleeves or pants, maybe during hot weather or you're suspicious of them avoiding you seeing their arms or legs, sit down and talk to your kid. Maybe start off by asking how school is going, and how their friend situation is. Friends are one of the biggest factors to being happy in a teen's life. If they're getting bullied or are having trouble with friends at school, it may be causing them to get very depressed without you knowing.
What some adults forget is how the littlest things in life when you're a pre-teen and teenager are about 10 times bigger to you at the time. A breakup with a boyfriend or girlfriend might feel like the end of the world, or a parents' divorce might feel like your fault and that you're not loved anymore. Talking with your kid about how life has so much more to it after you get past that stage, and how all this high school stuff won't matter anymore once you're in college, is very important. It was a very strong factor for me personally whenever I felt like life was horrible or hopeless. It's almost as if teens have blinders on from the big picture when their suffering from depression. It's only the here and now that matters, and it feels like it will go on forever.
Depression is so common today it's frightening. And so is the amount of depressed teens that commit suicide -- 15%. Be aware of all your friends and family, because they may be suffering from severe depression, and it's just bottled up inside them and invisible to others. They may just need someone, even just one person alone, to reach out and show them how much they care about them.