Am I depressed?

For the last month or so, I've been pretty sad consistently. I'm a teenager, and I've taken a lot of tests on the Internet that say I could be depressed but to consult my doctor. However, I haven't mentioned any of this to my parents. I am able to talk to my dad about almost anything, but he gets worried and I don't want him to freak out. (I understand that it sounds stupid of me to avoid mentioning possible depression to my parents, but it's more understandable if you're in my position.) And my step-mom, well, I can't really talk to her about anything...
Some symptoms I've been experiencing:
I seem to be getting more annoyed with my step-mom than ever before. I used to just accredit it to becoming a teen, but now it seems like more than that. I have a sister who is 1 and 1/2; my step-mom seems to favor her. I often complain to my friend how annoyed I am, but my friend's parents completely dote on her and she doesn't get it.
I also seem to alienate myself from my friends. At the beginning of this school year, I had a very solid group of three other girls. This group only lasted for about four months. I have a larger group of people that I eat lunch with, now, but I only feel close to two of them, and only one of those two feels close to me. And I have even alienated myself from the one girl who I can talk to, assuming that she doesn't understand and convincing myself that she is annoyed with me.
I've been very tired and stressed. Even though it is my first year of high school, most of my friends aren't as stressed as I am. Not only am I stressed, but I don't really know how to deal with the stress, so it makes it more difficult.
I have horrible self-esteem. My BMI is 18.7 and even though my Phys. Ed. teacher says I need to gain weight, all I see when I look in the mirror is fat.
I've also experienced some physical symptoms like heart palpitations, headaches, and occasional nausea.


I haven't considered death or suicide yet; that stuff scares me. I guess that's one positive...?

Am I depressed or am I just sad?

Post Edited (Alice_in_Wonderland) : 3/17/2010 3:58:52 PM (GMT-6)

Hi Alice_in_wonderland,

Welcome to the HealingWell Depression forum. I think that you know the answer to what you have to do. I can see you are very intelligent. Talk to somebody about the way that you are feeling, it is the only way to know the extent of your depression. Who knows the doctor might say you are just sad, but you could very well be depressed. It is good to nip it in the bud so to speak. That way you don't sink too far down.

As lyn said, maybe you have some family members that you could talk to. I am sure that your stepmother doesn't mean to seem like she favors the baby. But the baby is helpless and needs more attention than you do. So I feel that she only does this because she feels the need to. Maybe she just figures that you should know that she loves you and cares about you. Have you tried talking to her? Or are you just assuming that she wouldn't understand? Give her a chance.

If you can't talk to her, talk to your dad. I don't think he would feel that you were a burden in any way. I am sure that he would want you to feel better and be happy. Talk to somebody, Family, counselor or a doctor about this. There could be a quick fix to it all.

Best wishes to you.

Hugs, Karen