Does depression hit boys differently than girls? [Video]

In a recent interview with 1080 KRLD, Dr. Nicholas Westers, a pediatric psychologist at Children’s Health and associate professor at UT Southwestern, shed light on an often-overlooked issue: the mental health challenges faced by adolescent boys.

According to Dr. Westers, many boys and men don’t proactively look for treatment, even while suffering with mental health issues.

“A lot of boys and men don’t seek out mental health treatment even though they do struggle at times,” Dr. Westers said. “We know that symptoms can present differently for them than for girls.”

For young boys, symptoms of depression may present differently.

“For boys, they may be more irritable, cranky, and it may manifest through anger and loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities,” explained Dr. Westers.

This often leads to boys being missed by traditional screening measures that focus on symptoms more commonly expressed by girls.

Dr. Westers emphasizes the importance of recognizing the primary and secondary emotions in adolescents.

“It’s not culturally accepted typically in their minds or we’re not socialized as men …