Know the Warning Signs at College

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You know your child better than anyone else on earth. So even after he heads off to college, you should still keep alert to signs of change, upset, and distress. If you notice symptoms of the following problems or simply sense that something is wrong, don't wait but don't panic either. Start a dialogue with your child that will open the door to support and help.

Symptoms of Depression

Major depression shows itself in a combination of symptoms that interfere with normal life functioning. Clinicians believe that depression should be considered when five or more of the following symptoms (including one or both of the first two symptoms) are present over a two-week period:

• Depressed mood most of the day
• Markedly diminished interest or pleasure in all or almost all activities
• Significant weight loss when not dieting, weight gain, or decrease or increase in appetite
• Insomnia or increased sleeping
• Restlessness or slowing down of body movements
• Fatigue or loss of energy
• Feelings of worthlessness or excessive or
  inappropriate guilt
• Diminished ability to think or concentrate, or ­ indecisiveness
• Recurrent thoughts of death (not just fear of dying), recurrent thoughts of suicide, or a suicide attempt

Symptoms of Sleep Disorder

Sleep problems may be an early signal of emotional upset. Talk to your children about their sleep habits and listen for these tell-tale symptoms:

• Difficulty falling asleep
• Early morning wakening
• Waking up during the night
• Exceptional trouble getting out of bed in the morning

Symptoms of Substance Abuse

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism tells parents to watch for these signs of alcohol abuse. They are also signs of other forms of drug abuse:

• Lower grades
• Never available or reluctant to talk with you
• Unwilling to talk about activities with friends
• Trouble with campus authorities
• Serious mood changes

Symptoms of Generalized Anxiety Disorder

There is a difference between normal feelings of concern about college academics and social activities and the kind of worry that accompanies a generalized anxiety disorder. When your child talks to you about college life, listen for these signs that she may need help:

• Constant, exaggerated worrisome thoughts and tension about everyday routine life events and activities, lasting at least six months
• Almost always anticipating the worst even though there is little reason to expect it
• Worrisome thoughts accompanied by physical symptoms, such as fatigue, trembling, muscle tension, headache, or nausea

Symptoms of Eating Disorders: Anorexia

Signs of anorexia are as much in the obvious appearance of weight loss as in what your child says about her eating habits. Watch and listen for these behaviors and attitudes:

• The fear of being fat even when at or below normal weight
• Refusal to maintain body weight by restricting intake, leading to a weight loss of more than 15 percent of ­ normal body weight
• A distortion of body size and shape that causes even underweight sufferers to feel fat or obese
• In women, the absence of at least three consecutive menstrual cycles

Symptoms of Eating Disorders: Bulimia

Signs of bulimia are tough to monitor from a distance. Still, keep these symptoms in mind when you talk to your child about eating habits:

• Recurrent episodes of binge eating (at least two times a week for at least three months)
• A feeling of complete loss of control during the eating binges
• Persistent overconcern with body shape and size
• Regular engaging in self-induced vomiting, use of laxatives or diuretics, strict dieting or fasting, or vigorous exercise in order to prevent weight gain

Symptoms of Suicidal Thinking

Talking about suicide and other specific changes in behaviors are often outright warning signs. Pay attention to these signs of potential suicide, and take them seriously:

• Talking openly about committing suicide, or talking indirectly about "wanting out" or "ending it all"
• Expressing a sense of hopelessness
• Withdrawing from friends and social activities
• Taking unnecessary or life-threatening risks
• Giving away personal possessions
• Losing interest in personal appearance
• Increasing use of alcohol or drugs
• Having attempted suicide in the past, however
  half-heartedly