“Annie, I don’t understand why you don’t want to spend time with your friends anymore. Why don’t you call them?”

“I just don’t feel like it, Mom.”

“You really don’t feel like being with your friends?”

“Not too much.”

“You just seem to be going through the motions these days. You used to like school and now you just drag yourself through it. What’s going on with you?”

“I don’t know.”

Having a depressed teen makes banging your head against the wall seem pleasurable. At least you know how to stop the pain from the head banging.

Research has shown that low self-esteem and depression are very common among overweight adolescents. Overweight teens don’t fit into their lives very well. Their activity levels are generally low; they usually don’t participate in sports; their social circles tend to be much more constricted than average; they date very little, if at all; and, they often view their bodies and themselves as unacceptable. They’ve internalized this message, especially overweight girls, from our slim-obsessed culture.

Substantial weight loss, when accomplished in a well-designed therapeutic program, packs more anti-depressant punch than all the Prozac in America.  Improved fitness, health, and looks improve self-esteem and generate renewed energy and enthusiasm. Improved sense of control, even mastery, of a very difficult problem can transform chronic frustration into pride and hopefulness.