“It has been two days that my mother has not been able to get up from the bed and is conscious but unmindful,” said a fourteen year old teenage boy. It had become a practice for the mother to stay in such a state almost every third day. The boy started losing interest in his studies and friends or even playing outside. Why? Only because he could not understand how to leave his semi-conscious state all by herself in the home.
The misery was that he didn’t really know what the matter was with his mother. Then one day when he made a call with tears in his eyes, I was touched with his concern so I went home. I tried to wake the mother up who with her half opened eyes tried looking for her hand bag. I asked the boy to fetch it out for her. She put her hand in and went searching for something in and pulled out a strip of medicine which was empty. I wondered what it was but she surprised me with her statement – “Can you please buy me another strip. I have none after this.” I asked her what medicine was that. She informed that it was sleeping pills. I looked at the boy and found him gaping at her blankly. I understood that it was the first time that the child had realized the cause of his mother sleeping for the past two days. I knew immediately that I didn’t have to buy the sedatives for her since it was to affect the child badly.
It was a great task to explain her the harmful effects of what she had done and all the more tedious to dissuade her from taking the pills any further. But I did tell her that it was a shameful act and a self centered behavior as it was creating a very negative impact on the kid.
Depression was the reason for the mother to take up such a step but that was not just killing her but ruining the life of the teenager. Knowing the fact, he began reacting further adverse. He stopped worrying about the mother and became quite indifferent to her and to the entire family.
Some how he had to be diverted from his home affairs and put him to study. Surely he seemed disinterested but he had to be diverted from his family depression to let him live a normal kid’s life. He was motivated to play his favorite game, football but once he returned home, he had to face the same torture again. His life and interests began changing and so changed his behavior. He spent a lot of time with boys of his age and started over looking his studies. Gradually took to isolation from the family and picked up smoking and boozing at just the tender age of fifteen. He declined to listen to his elders and began practicing a different lifestyle.
Unfortunately the teenagers suffer a lot when depression hits them directly or indirectly. It is really important to mend the ways of our social structure and life to help our teenage lots. It is terrible to see our generation lose such misery. Depression is a slow death who snatches away happiness, family and society.
Keep them safe and protect them from being lonely.