Eye rolling, skipping dinner, or staying in bed for hours after everyone else is up might be normal parts of living with a teenager. When has it crossed a line, though? And how do you describe your teen—moody, depressed, or antisocial?
What’s My Teen Dealing With?
Moodiness
If your teen is always grumpy or seems to get upset at every little thing, you might describe them as moody. But moodiness is not a specific mental health condition, and moods change more slowly than you might realize. Moods describe how someone feels and acts and are less specific than emotions or feelings. Someone with low mood might be hopeless and sad; low mood is characteristic of depressive episodes. An elevated mood might describe someone who is euphoric and upbeat.
Moods are important parts of diagnosing and treating mental health. Different mental health conditions have mood patterns that are common among them. For example, people with bipolar disorder have characteristic depressive and manic episodes—which correspond with low and elevated moods.
Depression
Your teen might have depression if they struggle to feel positive, find joy, or be hopeful—all signs of low mood, which is a major symptom of depression. They might also be irritable or apathetic and feel anxious about things. Teens with depression might sleep too much or not enough, eat too much or not enough, withdraw from their friends and family, or neglect their hygiene and self-care.
Low moods aren’t always constant when living with depression, and your teen might act like their normal self for a while before they have another depressive episode. If you notice a pattern or if their mood is consistently low—or if other symptoms get in the way of their school, social, or even personal health—it might be time to get help.
Antisocial Behavior
The word “antisocial” is often misused when describing how someone behaves. From a mental health perspective, it’s not someone feeling like avoiding hanging out with friends or family. It describes behaviors that go against society and the people that live within it. Someone with antisocial traits, which are the hallmark symptoms of antisocial disorders like conduct disorder or antisocial personality disorder, has little if any, emotional attachment to their actions and may not truly regret what they do. Teens with antisocial behavior are often impulsive and may act out in ways like:
- Aggression and/or cruelty toward people or animals
- Fire setting
- Fighting with or without weapons
- Theft
- Skipping school
- Running away from home
- Substance use
It’s important to note that current criteria do not diagnose teens with antisocial personality disorder, only adults. Teens with similar traits may be diagnosed with a conduct disorder and/or another mental health condition.
When It’s Time for Help
If you’re worried about your teen’s mental health, it’s probably time to find help. Moodiness might be a normal part of adolescence, but it can quickly spiral into something more serious. Consider finding support for your teen if they:
- Skip meals and/or eating often, causing them to binge on food later or lose weight
- Stay glued to their phone or a video game to the point they don’t socialize much otherwise
- Pick fights, steal, destroy property, skip school, or run away
- Drink or use drugs, which you might be able to smell or find paraphernalia
- Have a hard time disconnecting to the point that they hardly ever feel happy
Help is available, and it might be more flexible than you think. Family First offers residential or partial hospitalization (PHP) treatment through our Pinnacle Day Program. We can help your teen explore their mental health so they can reconnect with themself and find a happier way forward.