how can I help my college kid with depression

[teacher333]

My college aged son is feeling signs of depression, but won't speak to his dr at home.  He was feeling a little better last week, but is having girlfriend issues and his depression/anxiety has heightened to where he wants to come home.  He needs to be a bit more resilient and realize that he has to finish out the semester and then can definitely come home, but his first response is to run.  How can his father and I help him?

[Dem--RO]

Hi @teacher333 and welcome to the Parents Forum.

I can understand that you're wanting to help support your son while he is going through such a difficult time, and also how this must be quite stressful for you as well.

This clip: What if my teen doesn't want help with their mental health? and the article: What to do if my teenager refuses help with depression might be good starting points, and although it says "teen" in the title, it is geared towards supporting young people in general.

As we are an Australia-based service, I wanted to pass along the contact info for kooth, who are a free and anonymous mental health service based in the US, as well as the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) which provides support and resources to individuals and family members.