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JANETTE PHILP AND MICHELLE FERRY ARE WEST AUSTRALIAN AUTHORS AND PUBLISHERS OF THE LIVE LOVE LAUGH SERIES. THEY ARE EVERYDAY WOMEN, MOTIVATORS AND LIFE COACHES WHO WALK THEIR TALK AND THROUGH THEIR COLLECTIVE EXPERIENCES, ARE ENTHUSIASTICALLY COMMITTED TO IGNITING THE PASSION IN OTHERS AND INSPIRING THE YOUTH OF TODAY.
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heir latest book Warning Signs which discusses the very real issue of teenage depression has been produced in collaboration with Youth Focus. This book aspires to educate teachers, parents, grandparents and any other responsible adults about the warning signs of depression in young people’s lives. To learn more about this debilitating mental health issue, read Janette’s open and honest account of her experiences with depression...... Sadness, low self-esteem and apathy – it is depressing just uttering those words, isn’t it? These are just some of the many adjectives used to describe the feelings a person experiences when in the throes of clinical depression. Depression is one of the most common of all mental health problems. One in five people will experience depression at some stage of their lives. I am one of those people. Michelle, my co-author, is another. Nowadays it seems like everyone is coming out and declaring they have been suffering from depression, which is fabulous because people are now more able to be open and honest about what’s going on in their lives. However, I also hear many people say they are sick of hearing every second person talk about having depression, when in their opinion, they are simply having a tough day. I hate to admit that I too used to think just like that. I just wanted people to get over it, and stop complaining. I thought they were all whingers! For many years I had absolutely no understanding of depression, I was extremely judgmental of people who spoke of having depression
and it was not until I personally was diagnosed with clinical depression that my whole perception changed. So what is depression? We use the term “depressed” loosely in conversation to describe distress or unhappiness following an unpleasant event that we have experienced. While we can all feel sad, moody or low from time to time, this feeling is a perfectly normal response which is usually short-lived, and usually resolves itself without the need for any specific treatment. Clinical depression however, is more than just a low mood, is more than just the “blues”, being “down in the dumps” or experiencing those temporary feelings of sadness that we all have from time to time. Clinical depression is a common mental disorder and a serious illness that is characterised by sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or low selfworth, disturbed sleep or appetite, low energy and poor concentration. People with depression find it hard to function on a daily basis and may be reluctant to participate in activities they previously enjoyed. Clinical depression is a serious condition that affects a person’s mind and body. It impacts all aspects of everyday life including eating, sleeping, working, relationships and how a person thinks about himself or herself. People who are clinically depressed cannot simply will themselves to feel better or just “snap out of it”. Some people experience these feelings intensely, for long periods of time and often without reason.
Michelle and I have both suffered with depression at different stages and for different reasons throughout our lives. We have also spent the past year living, breathing, reading, researching, interviewing, talking with and listening to teenagers. Most importantly, we are both mothers who have had teenagers who have lived with and without depression. Our teenagers have had friends who have lived with depression and sadly, they have seen friends die as a result of suicide. Michelle is also the mother of two daughters who have suffered with mental health issues that began in their teenage years. As mothers, caregivers, teachers, coaches, confidants and role models our children’s positive well-being always plays a massive part in our lives. So I guess it’s not just a matter of being entitled to write this book, it’s the fact that Michelle and I care deeply about this issue. As a community, we all need to care. We all need to make a difference to the lives of our teenagers. Often they suffer in silence, alone and often without a clue as to what’s going on in their life, let alone how to deal with it. A great starting place is for us all to become knowledgeable about the warning signs of depression, to know when to seek help, to know where to go for help, to be open to discussing depression and to not be ashamed of it or ignorant about it. I am not asking you to put your hand up, but I am asking you to think about these questions.
You might be wondering what entitles us to write about teenage depression warning signs?
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to know there is a lot of help available with valuable organisations such as Youth Focus, whom we have had the honour of being associated with in seeing Warning Signs come alive.
Do you know what actual depression warning signs are? Do you know how to help someone with depression? When overcome with depression, it is the most debilitating feeling to know that you need help and yet feel that life is just not worth living. I can tell you from my own experience, the times when I suffered from Depression were not easy putting on the act that I did every day to get through to the other end. I would smile, when all I wanted to do was cry. I laughed when all I wanted to do was die. I would lie in bed at night pleading with God to help me, yet at the same time hoping I wouldn’t wake up in the morning. For years I hid this from almost everyone. The saddest part is I know how hard it is to live with depression and I’m an adult, not a teenager who has the added stress of those ‘teenage years’, of growing up, having their lives change in this fast moving world, coping with self-image, peer pressure and possibly bullying – to then throw a dose of depression into the mix can actually render a teenager paralysed. We as a society and community need to learn more about this illness and respect the disease of mental health and its issues. “Just saying no,” does not
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prevent teenage pregnancy, in the same way that “Have a nice day,” does not cure chronic depression. For too many years Michelle and I have hidden behind our ‘super women’ masks, struggling with clinical depression, ashamed of the stigma attached to depression and the judgment we believed would be attached to us. I would fill every waking moment keeping busy, afraid that if I stood still for too long, I would be hypnotically drawn to the final conclusion; to steer the car from the road or consume the entire bottle of sleeping tablets. We know now that learning the warning signs helps to catch depression in the early stages before it grabs a strong hold and becomes too hard to manage. What if we as a society, as family members, as a parent or grandparents or a carer of teenagers like a footy coach or teacher, knew what the warning signs were? Could we have helped one teenager travel a happier path? It is time for everyone to become aware of THE WARNING SIGNS!!!! Depression can touch anyone at any stage of their life and there is NO shame in asking for HELP. Michelle and I recognise how important it is to be understood, respected and helped. It is wonderful
Teenage Depression Warning Signs has a team of people who have all generously given of their personal time and expertise in helping parents, grandparents and the larger community to become more aware of the warning signs for depression. They too wanted to make a difference. Are our teenagers worth the investment? If ever in doubt, let me leave you with this thought – they may represent only a percentage of our community today, but they are 100% of our future. This book has been proudly written, designed and printed entirely in Western Australia. For more information on Teenage Depression Warning Signs go to www.threellls.com. JANETTE PHILP and MICHELLE FERRY Email SCRIBE Magazine your experiences with depression and how you have overcome the challenges and we will send you a copy of ‘Warning Signs’. We have 5 Copies to give away! scribe@scribemagazine.com.au. All stories will be edited anonymously.