Teen daughter depression supplements

[welshgirl666]

Hi

I think my daughter 15 has depression. She has just admitted to feeling sad and unhappy for the last few months with thoughts of harming herself (but says she wont). I will ring the gp but was wondering if anyone has any advice on supplements she can take?

Is evening primrose recommended? And magnesium?

Any other advice is welcome too. We are very close but she feels she cant talk about it. Im not sure what to do to help her other than being there if she wants me.

Thanks

I've just ordered magnesium supplements for my dd who is 14 and sounds similar

Hi - I’m so sorry to hear this.
Feeling low and down definitely can come in waves at this age.
First I think it’s brilliant she’s talking to you. This will be hard for you to hear but you need to be there, non prying, loving and listening and as solid as a rock and calm. If you get angry, freak out or cry because you’re scared, she will retreat and get scared there’s something really wrong with her. The calmer you are, the less she will panic. So however she’s feeling, if she’s talking to you that’s a really great start.
Second, doctor is a great idea and I took my daughter twice and let her speak on her own and stayed outside . Just being proactive and going there helped her.
I am a big believer that diet is linked to mental health. My daughter took probiotics every morning, I juiced loads of fresh fruit and veg for her and varied her diet as much as possible with lots of healthy foods for her gut. As a supplement in addition to the ones mentioned, she takes HTP5 still and a spray of vit D. It’s very helpful for her. She’s also a big believer in a quick HIIT workout - and will do a YouTube dance thing if she can feel herself slumping. However, she’s in year 12 now. She was up and down in year 9 and 10 and learned these things then. It was harder to get her to understand how exercise and diet were linked to her brain but if your daughter is already communicating with you then that’s a great start.
Obviously things like family time, docking her phone at 9 at night so she can switch off and also talking to the school if there are issues with workload or bullying are also good to do - but I’m sure you’re already all over this.
I wish you the very best and hope your daughter feels much better soon. If she feels you’re calm and on her side I’m sure everything will be less daunting for her and she will start to improve. Xx

@lilactimes thank you so much for your detailed response. I agree that diet and exercise help massively, unfortunately she has an awful diet and has always been a nightmare fussy eater. I have bought her some vitamins and minerals and primrose oil so hopefully they will help a little. She is going to go to the gym which is good. She struggles to open up but im definitely going to keep communication lines open. I will give 5htp a go too. Thanks again for your help xx