Teen Goths Prone to Seriously Clinical Depression
Flash! Teenagers get depressed! And teen Goths tend to be more depressed than usual. They needed a study for this?
Still, we should take this seriously. Depression is not to be trifled with at any age. Ever. From Time:
Young people who identify as goths may be more likely to suffer from depression or to self-harm, according to new research published Thursday in The Lancet Psychiatry.
The goth subculture began in England during the early 1980s, an offshoot of the post-punk era, and its members are most easily identified by their dark clothing and makeup.
The study showed that 15-year-olds who identified very strongly with being a goth were three times more likely to be clinically depressed and five times more likely to self-harm by the age of 18.
This last paragraph should give everyone pause. Unless you’ve actually struggled with depression, you have no idea how horrible it can be. True depression is a chemical/psychological condition that cannot ever be cured by telling the affected person to cheer up. It can be tremendously debilitating and potentially dangerous.
