The Blues
I sat up and checked the time on the clock hung on the wall opposite my bed. It was 3am in the morning. I laid back down on the bed and tried to get some sleep. The sleep just wouldn’t come and this is how it has been for a while. My inability to sleep, my loss of appetite. The other day my mother offered to take my older brother and I to a restaurant so we could enjoy some time outside, I declined. I don’t know what was more shocking, that she forgot how much I loved to eat or that I wasn’t actually hungry. I switched on my phone and swiped left, searching for my books app. I loved to read novels; I had a few of them lined up waiting for me to read. I opened Vampire academy; I watched the movie two years ago and hoped for a part two, but when I checked the internet there didn’t seem to be any plans for production. I opted to read the book and downloaded all six of them, but for the past month I had only read ten pages of the first book. I checked my WhatsApp for messages even though I stopped receiving them a while ago. I was always in an irritated mood and never wanted to text anyone, so I never responded to messages.
On a particular day I decided to reply, but I got hostility and complaints on how long it took for me to reply. When asked why I never responded on time, I had no answer, all I could say was I had been busy and never with my phone. I didn’t blame them because even I didn’t know what was wrong with me. For a while I haven’t known what happiness feels like. I try to smile more because my mother complains of my constant frowning and my brother talks of my withdrawal. We used to be close, practically twins because of the 1year, 1day difference in age. My friend’s have stopped texting me to check up on me, my brother has lost all hope and has stopped bothering me and if I continue like this, my grades will keep dropping. Irritated at myself, I broke down in tears, not sure why I was crying, but I knew it was my fault. I glanced at the clock and it was already 7am, not wanting to attract attention I cleaned my tears. I did not understand why I was crying and I didn’t want anyone else to see me this way when I had no explanation.
This is an example of the life of a depressed teenager, loosing sleep or interest in your favorite hobby is not a normal thing that happens. Anger that has no cause, crying for no reason and withdrawal from friends and family. Inability to concentrate on studies causing his grades to drop. It’s important to look for warning signs and be able to communicate with teenagers to show them they’re not alone and they’re loved and supported and please seek professional help if they show extreme symptoms.
” In Nigeria, the SURPIN has found that about one-fifth of suicide cases seen at its affiliated institution are those aged 13–19 years, and that over 50 percent of the crisis calls received through its hotlines are from those aged 13- 29 years; 27.8 percent were students. This should worry every parent, and any Nigerian who values life, considering that the Nigerian National Youth policy (2009) defines youth as those aged 18 -35 years, while the African Youth Charter defines it as 15 – 35 years”. Adapted from the guardian, Read original article below,
https://m.guardian.ng/features/addressing-rising-cases-of-suicide-among-teenagers-in-nigeria/amp/
