By BREEZYE TELFAIR
Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School

She walks with a slouch, her face is blank, and her smile is hidden behind high cheekbones.

Look carefully and you will be able to see her soul through the eyes she once wished she could close forever.

But she had to keep living: she carried the burden of a struggling basketball team on her shoulders, the responsibility of a soprano section. Then there was the stress of maintaining grades, preparing for college. And a job that did not pay enough.

"Sometimes I use to think, what good am I, and that I am better off dead," 18-year-old Linda Fils-Aime from Miami says through clenched teeth, speaking slowly and shaking her head.

She is just one of the millions of teenagers that suffer from second level depression.

"When we talk about depression, we are talking a state of mind," said Skip Rossie, a director at the Switchboard of Miami, a local center that counsels people who need help. "Depression is a run of blues."

There are three levels of depression. The first level of depression is the everyday mood blues that last no more than a day or two. The second level of depression that many people, including Fils-Aime, enter into lasts no more than a month. People suffering from this type of depression may experience:

* Difficulty in sleeping, eating and socializing

* Lack of energy

* Difficulty concentrating

* Lost of interest

The third level of depression is the worst, said Rossie. Often referred to as bipolar or mania depression, it also can be genetic in some people. This results in chemical imbalances in the brain, which has the same effect of alcohol and drug usage. Some common symptoms of Depression Mania:

* Mood swings

* Severe insomnia

* Grandiose notions

* Chaotic and racing thoughts

Alcohol and drugs are common ways to escape depression, but their side effects create downers and thus the vicious circle continues, Rossie said.

"After they do one line of coke, they go through a down side and then they come right back. After five lines of coke they are in a greater depression than they were to begin with," said Rossie.

The best prescribed way to deal with a depression of any type is to talk about it. Friends can help. However, in the case of teenagers, parents should be aware of what the teen is experiencing, she said.

The sad part of Fils-Aime's tale is that her parents did not recognize her symptoms.

"My parents never noticed I had a problem because I never really talked about it," said Fils-Aime. "My parents didn't care."

Viviana Purrinos, of the Crisis Intervention Team, a project aimed at helping people with mental health problems, said the family is the root of many of the problems teenagers have. A lack of acceptance, lack of feeling wanted and lack of happiness are the main reasons the children feel as if they are hopeless and think that they are better off dead, Purrinos said.

Depression doesn't discriminate based on age, race or gender. Despite the myths, it does not develop into insanity, Rossie said.

"I have changed, I am grateful for my life now because I have a future ahead of me," Fils-Aime said.

These days, she rates her progress to being close to 65 percent recovery. Still, she walks with a slouch, and her response to questions is uncertain.

But this is good. This is better than she used to be. This . . . is progress.

By CHIMEKA THOMAS
Coconut Creek High School

Majer Khalil and Israel Ortiz are not typical counselors. They wear big shirts, baggy pants and the latest sneakers. Their speech is peppered with the most-recent slang. And instead of Ph.Ds and master's degrees, they carry degrees from the school of life.

Khalil, 18, and Ortiz, 19, are peer counselors at Regis House -- a nonprofit Miami organization that provides drug rehabilitation, education and job training to young adults. They each came looking to give meaning to their own lives. Now they help find meaning for others.

Last spring, Khalil joined the Regis House, 2012 NW Seventh St., to kick a four-year drug habit that began soon after he moved from Brooklyn to Miami. After completing a program for marijuana, acid and roofies (Rohypnol) addiction, Khalil enrolled in a separate program that helps young people get a General Equivalency Diploma.

"I was surprised when I first got there. I didn't expect that how it was set up, it would really get someone anywhere," Khalil said. "(But) I used drugs for almost four years. I stopped using last June."

Six months later, Regis House hired Khalil as a paid peer counselor. He then recruited his best friend, Israel Ortiz.

"I saw a friend in need," Khalil said. "He needed to get a job so he could get his act together."

Ortiz didn't join the program to overcome an addiction or get his GED, he said. He came simply to fill the empty hours he spent on the streets.

"I'd go to school in the morning, and then hang out, and cops started harassing us," Ortiz said. "Majer told me about this job that he does helping people, and I didn't have anything to do."

Ortiz volunteered six times before the Regis House hired him two weeks ago as an assistant photography crew leader and peer counselor.

In addition to counseling, Khalil, Ortiz, and the other Regis House workers and students participate in community activities such as anti-violence and anti-gun rallies, said Regis House project coordinator Shivaun Woolfson. They raise money for Regis House through barbecues and by selling T-shirts that Khalil helped design.

Khalil is heading another project to transform a wild field behind Regis House into a garden. He also gives motivational speeches at Regis House and local middle schools.

Ortiz, meanwhile, is helping to organize a photography contest.

But their main job remains peer counseling, which Ortiz said can be both easy and tough when many of the "peers" are your friends.

"The advantage is that I can be more down to earth. I can relate to [the students]," Ortiz said. "The disadvantage is that sometimes they slack off."

Ortiz said to some students, he's more than just a teacher. He's a friend.

"When I have a friend-teacher relationship, I sometimes have to bribe them to do things, but I try to help them out more," Ortiz said.

Ortiz believes in peer counseling because he has been in the same situation as the kids.

"[Students] come and they think, 'Look this kid has gold teeth. He used to party, he used to smoke and drink,'" Ortiz said. "I know how it is out there."

Khalil said he can relate to Carlos Rodriguez, 17, who has a job at Regis House as a maintenance worker.

"I have a good relationship with all of the kids," Khalil said. "One in particular that reminds me of myself is Carlos. I was the same when I was younger. Only he realized it before I did."

Khalil attributes his success to Woolfson.

"She actually helped me find my goals," he said.

On June 24, Khalil accomplished one of his goals -- he got his GED. As for the future,

Khalil plans to enroll at Miami-Dade Community College and work toward a degree in clinical social work. He also wants to join the U.S. Marines for at least four years to learn discipline.

Ortiz is working toward a high school diploma. When he left Miami Senior High School, he only needed one more credit to graduate. He's earning that credit now at The English Center in Miami. He then plans to attend electricians' school or go to college to study photography and play football or baseball.

"[Success] depends on the educator and the peer," Woolfson said. "Majer demonstrates a clear attitude. He keeps his eye on the prize. Israel is a good leader. He goes out and gets what he wants. Other kids see him doing that, and that gives them hope."