Data was analyzed in the National Longitudinal Survey Study from 1997 specifically relating to questions regarding depression in youth. In the analysis it was found that how the respondent defined their own depression and poor mental health was different than the perceptions about their mental health from those that live with them in the same household, mostly parents. It was also questioned if gender made a difference regarding poor mental health, both self-assessed and by others in the household. In all cases, the respondents' self perception of mental health was much worse than the perception of those who lived with them. The ramifications from this may mean that the respondent may not get the help they need to improve mental health because others in the household, especially parent figures, are unaware of the depth of the disability. This may also indicate that communication is lacking in this area because of the stigma attached to mental disabilities. It was also found that gender did make a difference in that females considered themselves more depressed than males. What was interesting was that others' impression of the female respondents' mental health was much more positive than others' impression of the males even though self-perception showed the opposite. Either depression in females is more prevalent than in males or males are talking about it more freely. Regardless, it is essential that parents and guardians become educated in distinguishing differences between typical teenage anxiety and depression and communicating about this disorder and knowing what signs to look for. A part of this study also shows the impact that depression has on how much time youth spend at work in a year which collaborates with many previous studies. (Contains 3 tables and 1 figure.)