I'm depressed and don't know what to do...?

Question

I'm a fifteen year old girl and I've been homeschooled for almost four years. I spend all day on my laptop and I hate going out. I don't have a lot of self confidence because of my looks. I also feel nervous and have small anxiety attacks from time to time, even when I go over to my father's for the weekend(parents are divorced.) My mom hasn't kept up my schoolwork and I'm scared about my future. I don't know what to do or how to get over my depression. Oh, before you suggest anything related to faith that could help me, you should know that I'm Pagan.

Answer 1

Try to learn a fine art; music drawing etc. If I did not have my music I would either become a dull person or I could go mad.,


I used to be like you but not very insecure of my self. Try to be positive; it's hard though. Do you have Friends, if you do I hope they help, other wise if you don't; you can create a place in you're mind with a person. I have a memory palace that I go in to take refuge from the world, in there I have a friend, he is the more logical part of me, he gives me advice and gives me more company than anyone else I know. He has a sick sense of humor though.
I am not sure this is healthy though, I am less depressed

Answer 2

Hello Birdie.... the teenage years are difficult years for most kids. Believe it or not, kids that go to regular school have just as many problems and feel awkward an nervous too. At 15 lots of girls haven't blossomed yet. When I was a teen, we always used to say that 16 was the magic age that we would suddenly turn into a swan.... and I have to admit that most of us did look better at 16 so don't give up hope. Sometimes the face, nose and body haven't caught up with each other yet until you get a little older. You have obviously had a lot to deal with becuse of your parents divorce and I'm sure lots of other things in your life going on too. It seems to me that in order to be home schooled, you have to pass tests so if you don't pass them, your Mom might not be able to home school you. If I were you, I'd search this on the internet to find out for sure. You sound like a vey sensible girl with a good head on her shoulders. Does your Mom or Dad allow you to get involved in other things.... maybe you can join a club or do something with other teens that can give you the social involvement that you need - and most importantly allow you to have some fun. You sound like you are lonely and that is probably why you are depressed and have anxiety. Try to see if you can get involved in some activity outside your home - I think this will help you to feel happier.

Answer 3

Birdie,

Although everyone has average ups and downs, ongoing depressive feelings can often be a sign of a real condition that includes symptoms associated with extreme sadness, poor motivation, loss of interest in things, appetite and sleep difficulties, etc. If you are suffering from this condition, treatment does help.

If you are having any serious thoughts of self-harm, you must immediately call 9-1-1 or have your parents take you to the nearest hospital emergency room.Otherwise, you may want to talk with your parents about having you evaluated soon, by your family doctor.

Clinical depression can be characterized by your mind seemingly playing a trick upon itself, wherein there tends to be an excessive focus upon negatives to the exclusion of positives. This imbalanced focus contributes to the aforementioned symptoms. One out of every three to four people will likely experience a clinical depressive episode at some point throughout their life.

Most successful treatment approaches include a combination of medication and counseling, although many people may find relief from one or the other.

More information about depression can be found online here:
http://www.SimplifiedHealth.com

Jerry S.

Answer 4

Sounds like you need friends. Having friends online is good, but you would do better meeting friends in real life. See if your folks will help you join something where you can meet people. You might even be able to find other pagans. You'd be surprised how many are out there. I've met a few dozen where I am.

There are some social networking sites like MySpace, Meetup.com and some online communities, but keep your guard up. There are some pervs looking for their next victim, so take precautions about meeting people you met online.

You didn't go into detail about your looks, but I will bet it's not as bad as you think it is. It's very common for women to be very critical of their own appearance, even if everyone else thinks they look fine.

Answer 5

I'm pagan as well! :)

First off...if you are home-schooled and your home-school teacher is not teaching, you need to tell someone (your dad?). Maybe the lack of socializing could be assisting your depression? I wish I could go back to high school just for the social aspect! Talk to your mom and dad about going to a public school. At least there you are definitely going to get an education. Homeschool maybe a little more relaxed, but relaxed can lead to slack...soomething you don't want to do. Do you have goals for after school? College? Do you work? As a pagan, do you belong to a type of church or coven or are you solitary? Try to get advice from as many people as you can. Try to continue your education for as long as you can. I finished high school , but never finished college. Now I;m stuck making $10 an hour, 40 hours a week, two kids, living paycheck to pay check. Do yourself a favor and try your best to continue with school.

Answer 6

I know what it's like to be depressed and to feel alot of anxiety I feel you. I don't have the best looks either. What you need to do is something that will be very hard. You need to just let go, get out start trying to do something. Get involved with people your age as much as you can. What helped me was smoking weed, it would help me relax it also helped me meet new people and it takes away the anxiety. It allowed me to get out there. Now I'm not saying thats what you need to do, but find a social outlet for something that interest you. Then you need to better your education, because your situation is keeping you depressed see if there are any programs around you to help you get a diploma. Check the local highschools and see what kind of adult education programs they have. After you get over your anxiety, and get out there, and better your situation you will feel alot better about yourself and your depression will fade away hopefully. If you feel like this is too much, then try and seek some type of therapy. I hope things work out for you, you deserve it.

Answer 7

Well first,you got to get out of that house and breathe the fresh air and enjoy what nature has to offer. You would be surprised at how refreshed you feel when coming in from outside. You need a change of pace,go to the movies,go shopping,even if it is for something small or unimportant,go to the community center where they have other teens you can meet and where you can participate in activities. Get in that mirror and tell yourself that you are beautiful everyday even if you don't feel like you are. You are 15 and do not need to be wasting away your youth indoors. There's a whole world out there and the world is your oyster.

Answer 8

i should tell you that you definately need to go out and make some friends outside out your parents circle, you're 15 now and go out by yourself, join any kinda class talk to ppl, if you don't like it you can quit anytime. and admire yourself on anything that you do. it will get better as the time passes by, don't worry about anything.
I know everything by first hand experience. pagan? i don't know what that is but if you have faith in God then there you go, you have been saved. i realized that with faith everything is possible, so depression is only a product of our thoughts.

Answer 9

Depression is not something that you create, or something that you try to get over. Depression is a medical condition that requires treatment. Go see a doctor. Don't think that making friends will get you out of your depression. You will only be a depressed person with friends. I know because I have depression, and unless I'm on my medication I am miserable. I take my depression wherever I go- on vacation, to the beach, to the bank- EVERYWHERE.

Answer 10

Do you have an adult in your life other than your parents you can talk to? Maybe a grandparent or aunt?, Tell them how you feel, let them try to help you. Maybe it would be better for you to GO to school rather than being home schooled. You would then need to go out just to go to school, you would be in contact with other people your age. Maybe you hate to go out because you have just become more comfortable staying home and you have become a little fearful of the outside world. You mention your looks, are you on-line or watching tv and comparing yourself with all the "perfect" people you see?, they're not reel, they have professional make up artists, hair extensions, plastic surgery and enhanced photos. Whatever you look like, which I would guess is not bad at all, take care of yourself, eat healthy food, excercise, and keep clean. That is all you need to do for your looks. Don't be looking in the mirror all the time comparing yourself to others, you are you, you are your own unique special self that no one else is. If your are healthy and your body "works" you can move and function without pain, you can see, hear, think and learn, try to be thankful for that! Try to be thankful for little things in life to start with ei, if it is cold outside and you are warm, if you are tired and your pillow feels soft and comfortable, if your are hungary and you have good food to eat. If you have family who you can count on to love you (even if they aren't perfect) and alway try to do what is best for you.
Maybe you need medical attention for depression or maybe you just need a change in routine and habits. I have found that at least part of depression is due to bad habits that you can get into, such as dwelling on negative thoughts, staying by yourself and convincing yourself it is because no one likes you, etc, try to change some of your habits to those that can make you feel better, if you don't want to go out around people, just go out, look at the flowers grow, listen to the birds sing, maybe plant some flowers and take care of them, being outside with nature can help put things into perspective. You are 15, you are a young child, you have alot of life ahead of you, love yourself and your life!