Dark Cloud Over Antidepressants

Suicide is the third leading cause of death for teens between 15-19 -- in any given year, 20% of high school students will think about suicide and 10% of them will attempt (US numbers). The traditional method of treatment has been heavy on the drugs, low on the therapy. Now questions are being raised concerning not only the effacy of the antidepressants -- most of which are selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs) -- but if they are also pushing teens over the edge and causing them to commit suicide. In England already, SSRIs, with the exception of Prozac, are no longer allowed to be administered to teens. So what to do instead of taking antidepressants? Experts suggest two forms of psychotherapy:

cognitive-behavioural therapy -- which teaches patients to monitor how they think and feel, and what actions they take on those thoughts and feelings. (Reference books can be found here.)

dialectial-behaviourial therapy -- which teaches patients to understand what causes them stress and how about the causes, as well as how to deal with the stress when it does occur without it getting out of control.