What a Doctor can do for a Depressed Teenager
Everyone, when not feeling feels a sense of panic within. You get worried about what you might be feeling. And we always dread the presence of serious illnesses. To make sure that it’s not a serious condition, we go to the doctor. Doctors are the ones we turn to whenever we are feeling bad – be it a medical or a psychological problem. Even health care professionals, who have studied in the same field – nurses, medical technologists, even doctors – turn to doctors and specialists for a thorough evaluation. There are three basic things that a doctor can do for a depressed teen.
Assessment
Before a doctor can diagnose that you have teenage depression, he will first need to assess your condition. He will need to take a medical history. He will be asking you the medical conditions and illnesses you’ve had before, your current medical condition, and if you have a medical disorder as of the moment. Part of the history taking is asking you of your family history. Studies have shown that there is a genetic predisposition to depression so you will also be asked if any of your family members have suffered from this same condition.
Physical and laboratory examinations will also be done to rule out possible medical conditions that may cause your depression. If there are any, then he may concentrate on treating this first. Of course, you will also be given therapy for the depression.
Psychiatric evaluation will also be done as part of the assessment. The doctor will evaluate you for sings of possibly co-existing psychiatric disorders such as mania, schizophrenia and anxiety. Your risks for suicide will also be evaluated. Part of the psychiatric evaluation would also be the gathering of data regarding the symptoms that you have been experiencing. You will be asked what the symptoms you have been having are, and how long you’ve been having these.
Diagnosis
Only a qualified medical practitioner can diagnose if you are currently having teenage depression or not. Based on the data that the doctor has gathered from his assessment, he will then diagnose if you have mild, moderate or severe depression. He will not diagnose you in just one sitting. Careful and thorough evaluation is needed. The diagnosis is based on the symptoms that you have been having, and all the physical and laboratory tests done.
A general practitioner usually cannot diagnose teenage depression. When they check you up and see signs for depression, they usually refer you to a psychiatrist for further evaluation. The final diagnosis will then be made by the psychiatrist or any medical practitioner capable of doing psychiatric evaluation.
Treatment
Upon diagnosis, you physician will recommend to you treatment therapies for your depression. The treatment that he will prescribe would depend on the severity of your symptoms. For mild depression, he may order you for psychotherapy and family therapy. You may go on without taking medicines. For the moderate type, you will be asked to go to the same therapies mentioned and this would include medication therapy. For severe teenage depression, hospitalization may be required especially for those who have suicidal and homicidal risks. This is to make sure teen is perfectly safe, including your significant others.
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