Beth J. Harpaz, The Associated Press

NEW YORK — If you’re the parent of a tween or teen, chances are you’ve been asked to leave the room during your child’s visit to the doctor so they can have a private chat.

Now of course I believe that teenagers should have a trusting relationship with their doctors. But while I’m sitting there alone in the waiting room, watching the younger mommies bounce babies on their knees, I can’t help but wonder what my kids are telling the doctor behind that closed door.

See, I’m a nosy mom, and if something’s going on with my children’s health, I want to hear about it. I mean, if your kid was suicidal, or a heroin addict, and somehow you didn’t know it, would the doctor tell you?

Turns out the answer is yes. “If we are concerned that someone is in danger, we are compelled to share that information,” said Dr. Joseph Hagan, who is part of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Bright Futures initiative to improve children’s health.

But Hagan emphasized that giving kids a chance to speak privately with doctors “is not about secrecy. It’s about autonomy. A 16-year-old should begin to ask his own questions about his health.”

In fact, if your pediatrician doesn’t ask you to leave the room during teen visits, maybe he or she should. (more…)

Came across this good article about stigma and teen depression by Leigh Belz over at Teen Vogue. Check it out!

It all started in the sixth grade,” says Jenny,* a seventeen-year-old from Sacramento, California. “I was heavier than a lot of the other girls in my class, and that made me feel self-conscious. My mom and dad were having problems at the time, too, and I kept it all to myself. That’s how my depression began. And it got worse as I got older–I became more anxious and withdrawn, and it became something I couldn’t control. You never would have known it, though. I always had a smile on my face.” By eighth grade, Jenny says her depression was something she could no longer hide. “That year, when I was fourteen, I tried to commit suicide,” she reveals. “Afterward, I was so ashamed of myself. But I didn’t know how to deal with it. I didn’t want to talk to anyone.”

According to Harvard Medical School, about 8 percent of teens will experience depression before they reach adulthood. In addition, the U.S. Surgeon General reports that between 10 and 15 percent of teenagers have some symptoms of depression at any given time.

What separates depression from regular, everyday sadness? “Time,” says Richard E. Nelson, Ph.D., author of The Power to Prevent Suicide (Free Spirit Publishing). “Depression is something that lasts at least ten days,” he says. “Many students may get to school by 8:00 in the morning and feel sad, then are happy by 10:30, and then get sad again at 1:30. That’s normal.” Depression, he says, is more of a constant. According to experts, many teens experience mood swings simply as a result of surging hormone levels. But the condition of depression is also often characterized by behavioral changes like low energy levels, oversleeping (or, conversely, trouble falling asleep), irritability, changes in appetite, and isolation.

“Teens don’t show symptoms of depression the same way adults do. Generally, I break teen depression into three categories,” Nelson explains. “Ten percent is clinical, 10 percent is chemical, and the largest category in young people is what I call situational–related to something happening in their lives. For this reason, depression can manifest itself in different ways and intensities.” Being depressed doesn’t just mean you’re crying all the time–instead, you also may not want to hang out with your friends or you may have constant stomachaches that land you in the nurse’s office.

Read the full article here.