Well there is still that teacher and a school counselor. I can't remember how old you are but I am assuming young enough that you would have to tell your parents to get professional help.

My advice would be to tell your parents and let them help you get professional help. You have not said much about your parents but I am assuming they want what is best for you and would be willing to learn and be understanding.

How- just tell them you think that you are suffering from depression and this is why. Symptoms whatever they are, sleep patterns, appetite, how interested are you in things you would normally be interested in, energy level, motivation, irritability, anger, isolating, wanting to sleep all the time. Suicidal thoughts is a little trickier. If you really think you are in danger then you have to tell someone. If they are just thoughts and you don't have a plan you may hold back on those. If you tell someone those it will get their attention and they will take you seriously I would hope. Maybe with your friend you tell her and you make a pact that you will never do something dumb without calling her first. I make such a pact with my daughter. I made sure we both rubbed our blood together so it is a blood oath that we will tell each other everything.

Do yourself a favor and write a letter to yourself, no one has to see it, describe to your self how depression is effecting you. All your symptoms, affecting grades and school, your relationships with friends, everything you can think of as to how it makes you think and feel and how it affects your life.

This is what you end up telling someone. Your parents. Forget about all that crap that you don't want them to worry or burden them. They want what is best for you if they are loving parents.

Some here are going to disagree with me. But my opinion is the risks of AD's are very low. You might get some side effects you might not, they will probably go away. SSRI's are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. SSNRI's are selective serotonin and nor epinephrine reuptake inhibitors. You can look up all the info on Zoloft or Celexa and read all the potential side effects. Personally I recommend you don't do this cause it will scare you and you may even get some psychosomatically. But if you look at side effects also look at the clinical trials that came up with them and look at the percentage of people that got them. It is usually like 1% of the people tested got this or that side effect. Everyone is very different in how they react to meds. Asking us how you will do on Celexa, for example, and what side effects you will have is a meaningless question. No one knows we are all so different. You have to try it and see. Once I decide to take one I don't look at side effects because I do not think they are dangerous and I don't want to read a bunch of stuff that will scare me. If one could possibly have dangerous effects a good doc should tell you about those. If you take one you just have to really be aware of how it is effecting you and if it is something serious you call your doc and quit taking it. Millions of people take them everyday with no problem.