I have noticed that the last 3 years or so that my daughter seems to be depressed at times, especially during the winter. This year things started earlier and I took her to the doctor a month ago. He said yes she is depressed and prescribed Prozac, which I was afraid to start her on and thought counselling might be helpful. We went to a Pyschiatrist on Tuesday and she was diagnosed with a Major Depressive Disorder. We are on a waiting list for counselling with clinicians who work under the supervision of 2 Pyschiatrists. I was advised to start her on meds, but it can wait until we start counselling so I have more support, maybe a couple of months. I myself suffer from the same thing and recently started meds, so my mind is not quick right now. It is getting better daily.

My question is, how can I motivate my daughter in the mornings. She does not want to get up for school. She is failing right now, and missing whole mornings is not going to help her. School is very important to her, and once she gets there she is ok. She is upset about missing the mornings,she wants to go but cannot get out of bed. She sleeps longer or just lays there. She gets upset about her failing marks as well. Music is her life and she can't make it to Jazz band before school starts. She is usually an A, A+ student, she is failing most of her classes. This is her first year of high school and she cannot make assignments up like previous years. She is having trouble computing what is being said during class, she hears the words but nothing makes sense.

Does anyone have a child on Prozac or had. I think I should really be starting her but I am very afraid. I am currently a single mom of 3,my daughter is the oldest, with in elementry school. I am afraid also of if I don't start the meds. She is not suicidal. I feel so bad for her and am at a loss of how to help her right now. I understand what she is going through. Any suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks.

Your Pdoc has prescribed meds, why wait? Maybe thats what she needs to help with her motivation.

sooner she starts antidepressants the better i would have thought. no reason to wait is there really? i was first on them only 2 yrs older than u r daughter is. the sooner she starts the sooner she cld start seeming better. good luck

yes, ditto what they said. i'm sure many of us here wish we had gotten treatment sooner. you are a wonderful mom for making sure she gets what she needs.

just start giving them to her. i'm sure you can call the doc if you have any questions while she goes through the start-up period.

good luck to you both!

i have an 18 year old son that's on prozac right now -- this is the third AD he's been on.
he started at 17 -- I wish we had tried them earlier.

he is lucky that he doesn't have major side effects from any of them.

i would go ahead and let your daughter start and just keep a close eye out for side effects or any worsening of mood -- and keep in close contact with her doctor about any changes that you don't like.

and remember that it takes a while for them to be effective -- but you might see some changes within a few days.
also, it takes some trial and error to find the right one sometimes -- so don't get discouraged if the first one doesn't work exactly right.

i used to be in a similar situation
i didn't want to get out of bed at all
i would want to sleep for days on end
if god permit. b/c i always thought
that if i slept a little longer, just a little
longer then maybe when i wake up it'll
be okay again. everything will be okay.
i was never on prozac but i sincerely hope
that your child has a better responce to
meds than i did. good luck && keep us posted
Lauren

Thank you everyone. My daughter has started her pills. She has had 2 so far. Hopefully it gives her a good start and she can go back to school after the break and it won't be long for them to kick in.

dusty, The others have given thoughts about the medication. I have a suggestion about your daughter's motivation in the mornings. I think the only way this can be handled well with her depression is to have a conversation with her about it during a time when she is doing well -- some afternoon or evening, or on a weekend. Tell her that you understand that she doesn't want to get up the mornings and let her tell you about how she feels. Ask her what her feelings are about how she's doing in school. She is well old enough to understand exactly what's going on. I think you can only explore what's going on and what the options are. The only way you can help her get out of bed in the mornings is to help her figure out what will work for her.

How are her periods? Low blood sugar can cause problems with menstruating ladies: it took me 23 years to sort myself out and that was with the help of a UK Charity, NAPS - e-mail them for advice and read their webby.

Making sure she has supper might help the low mood. Espeically if she is missing breakfast. Keeping the body fuelled at this age is not a teens idea of fun often but is ESSENTIAL. However ill I felt Mum would not let me leave the house until I had eaten a round of toast with honey. Or a bowl of cereal. Bananas are a good way of helping blood sugar, as well a s porridge they are slow release.

Is your daughter afraid of something even though she likes her education programme? Does she feel better when the weather gets brighter?