Depression In Teens
By guest author
KAYLA WRIGHT
Licensed Christian Counselor
Specialist in Christian Counseling for Teens
Life Training Christian Counseling
Mental Health America, in a 2022 study found “15.08% of youth (age 12-17) report suffering from at least one major depressive episode in the past year.” If you have teens in your sphere of influence, odds are you know some who are wrestling with depression. It is easy to look around and become overwhelmed with the level of hurting among the young people you love. After helping them seek the support of a teen counselor, there are some things you can do personally to support the teens in your life feeling depressed.
Listen To Them
“I heard the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live.”
Psalms 116:1-2
These teens need a place to go to ventilate their emotions. The weight of their despair has overwhelmed them to a point of little to no hope. Providing a place for these teens to come and share their burdens without judgment or condemnation is critical. This allows them to lay down the burdens they’ve been carrying, while helping them feel seen, known, and valued. Providing them a space to talk also aids them in putting their negative thoughts on trial. As they verbalize their negative thought processes, they can more easily recognize them and apply biblical truths to them.
Love Them
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”
1 Corinthians 13:4-8a
Paul very clearly names off these attributes of love in his first letter to the Corinthians. In 1 John 4:8, we learn that God is love. Beyond showing these teens the nature of God’s love for them, we must be showing them love and not just telling them they are loved. Teens who are wrestling with depression have already determined they are unlovable. In order to help them know love, our words can’t be our only source. We have to show them through extending patience, mercy, and grace towards them in every interaction. Through your consistency in showing love to them, you will be able to tell them with credibility that there is nothing that can separate them from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:39).
Lead Them
“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.”
1 Timothy 4:12
Teens who are struggling with depression are not only in need of someone to show them love in action. They are also in need of individuals who are authentically walking out their faith. These teens have difficulty with thinking optimistically. The struggles in this life are overshadowing any good that may be present in their lives. Individuals who are not living God’s truth in their own lives are not going to have credibility with these teens. This is not a call for adults to be perfect, as no one but Christ will ever be perfect, but it is an encouragement to be intentional with their own personal walks with Christ so when these teens share their struggle, you can empathize with them in their vulnerability. This connection will give you credibility with these teens to speak life into them and encourage them to take steps toward their own healing.
Christian Counseling Helps Teens Deal With Depression
Kayla Wright joined the counseling team at Life Training Christian Counseling in Louisville, Kentucky in May of this year. The passion of her counseling work is to make a meaningful difference in the lives of Teens and pre-teens.
Kayla is nationally licensed as a Christian Counselor by the National Christian Counselors Association. She possesses an advanced board certification in Child & Adolescent Therapy. Kayla gained extensive experience and credibility in providing counseling to teens and pre-teens during her tenure on the staff of Revive Christian Counseling in Owensboro and Madisonville, Kentucky. She is highly skilled in teenage substance abuse counseling and teenage depression counseling.
Kayla Wright, as well as each of our other counselors, offers convenient sessions at Life Training Christian Counseling in Louisville, Kentucky. She also offers online counseling via Zoom or FaceTime. Please click on this link to learn much more about how our Counseling for teens and pre-teens in Louisville, Kentucky can help the child you love find the highly-effective, Christ-centered help they need. Contact us today at 502-717-5433, or by email at kayla@lifetrainingcounseling.org