Age old problem

The number of depression cases increases as children progress through school, according to research on the annual evolution of adolescent mental health status from 2009 to 2020 contained in the 2020 Blue Book of Mental Health in China. The blue book is co-sponsored by the Institute of Psychology, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Social Sciences Academic Press.

The detection rate of depression in elementary school is about 10 percent, with major depression between 1.9 percent to 3.3 percent, whereas the detection rate of depression in high school is close to 40 percent, with major depression at 10.9 to 12.5 percent, according to the blue book.

The average level of depression among teenagers from the third year of middle school to higher grades is significantly higher than those in the lower grades. As ages and academic stages rise, depression among adolescents becomes more serious and pressing.

The average age for students in China to be excused from school for the first time due to mental difficulties is less than 14 years, according to the latest publication of the National Mental Health Assessment Development Center of the CAS's Institute of Psychology and other bodies.

Of those, more than 30 percent are exposed to other physical and psychological difficulties, such as sleep deprivation and obsessive-compulsive disorder. When teenagers are diagnosed with mental illnesses, half of them take one to four years to recover.

Li Nian believes that society still lacks qualified and responsible mental health counselors, especially at each educational level. This shortfall prevents families from getting help from school counselors and puts the financial burden on them to pay for treatment.

She also thinks that the social stigma attached to psychological difficulties makes it harder for depressed teenagers to recover. More general education regarding symptoms of psychological illnesses, as well as better medical definitions of psychological illnesses, can foster empathy and reduce stigma, she added.

Pang's mother, Guo Peiyi, believes that the school's teachers and her change of attitude toward her son played a crucial role in supporting and helping him when he was at his lowest point.

"At that time, several teachers and I told Pang that it didn't matter how he did in the exam; as long as he could finish it, it was already a success," said Guo.

Riding it out

As parents who have accompanied their children through depression, Guo and Zhang have both seen families and society now pay more attention to this trend and generally have a better attitude toward mental health issues.

They believe that with the rise of depression in adolescents and the increasing pressure from academic competition, schools and parents are more open-minded and understanding of the importance and seriousness of these problems than they were in the past.

Wang Pan, deputy director of the Beijing Municipal Commission of Education, said at a ceremony in May to promote awareness about students' mental health, that the commission has always attached great importance to students' mental health.

He stressed the need to understand the importance of working on students' mental health issues, improving services for those affected, and cultivating students' positive thinking.

Li, the psychologist, advised young people undergoing mental hardships to not blame anyone, including themselves, their parents, or society, for their problems.

A 20-minute walk to the park can be a positive sign of engagement and acceptance of real life, she said. Sometimes feeling down is inevitable, and almost everyone is anxious and stressed nowadays, so what we need to learn is how to deal with it, Li said.

"When the wave comes, we don't have to push it down. We can actually surf with skills that a lot of psychologists are now working on by testing different interventions, and that's what my field is doing," said the psychologist.

"Of course, mental health education in our country started late, and clinical psychologists still have a relatively small voice, but we are trying as much as we can."