I have a 16 year old son who seems to be spiraling into depression. He was a model kid pre-pandemic, when he entered Hugh school as a freshman. He played sports, made lots of friends and was an honor roll student.
‘We kept him pretty isolated during the pandemic, and since the return to school, things have gone downhill quickly. His old friends are friendly to him, and from what we can tell they interact at school, but my son is no longer included in their social gatherings. He has tried to reach out and is either lied to or excluded. Neither he nor we know the exact reason, other than the fact that many of his friends continued to socialize during the pandemic while we kept him mostly isolated.
Feeling left out has begun to affect him in other ways. He is sullen. Lacks motivation. Grades are slipping, and in his junior year when he should be preparing for college, he does little but sit around his room. We have tried talking to him, but he has closed himself off to us, and we are very concerned about his mental health. Any advice is appreciated!