One of the disorders of childhood is anxiety and depression, which is sometimes left behind by parents. Negative mood along with physical pain, anorexia and boredom are symptoms of depression in children.
Tips for Depression in Children
Silence, isolation, aggression and embarrassment are signs of depression in children. When we hear that someone is depressed, it does not occur to us that the patient is a young child, but it must be said that children and even infants suffer from depression .
My daughter sits alone in her room for hours and plays with a doll. When we have a guest, he sits aside and plays alone, polite and quiet, and does not play with the devilish and noisy children … Thank God that my teenage son is not a playmate at all. He does not date or go out with noisy and passionate teenagers at all. We sometimes force him out of the house.
Causes and signs of depression in children
“My son never argues with us and, thank God, we have no problem with him …” They prefer noise, but is it really normal for a child to sit alone in his room for hours and not say a word, or a teenager who does not argue with his parents about anything and does not leave the house?
Until a few years ago, most people thought that depression was just an adult illness and children did not get depressed at all because childhood is a time of joy and irresponsibility, but doctors say that even a child under 2 may become depressed. We talked about this issue with Dr. Shahram Mohammadkhani, Associate Professor and Clinical Psychologist and faculty member of Kharazmi University.
What is the prevalence of depression in children?
Between 2 and 8% of children under the age of 4 to 18 experience at least one event of clinical depression in their lifetime. Recent studies have shown that 25% of adolescents experience the least mild symptoms of depression at some point in their lives; That is, one out of every 4 people. This is a significant prevalence that needs attention, but unfortunately, because it is neglected, it is diagnosed too late.
What are the consequences if depression is diagnosed late or not at all in children and adolescents?
Depression causes many problems in children. The depressed child withdraws from social interactions with peers, has low self-esteem, poor social skills, and a negative attitude toward self, life, and the future, all of which predispose him to adverse consequences. If left untreated, a depressed child or adolescent is more likely to develop other mental disorders, such as substance abuse and suicide in adulthood. Even high-risk behaviors can sometimes be a response to underlying depression in children and adolescents.
What causes depression in children to be diagnosed late?
Perhaps the most important reason is the nature of the disease. As you know, childhood disorders are of two types; Endogenous and exogenous. Extrinsic disorders, such as hyperactivity , are diagnosed earlier because they are noisy and annoy parents, but endocrine disorders, such as depression, are concentrated within the person and suffer from within and for those around them. They are not annoying, they are noticed later.
Parents and school teachers may even encourage these children or adolescents to be calm and harmless (so-called positive children), and this will be one of the perpetuating factors of this disease. Parents of depressed children and adolescents usually take them to a counselor when they have severe academic failure , poor social relationships, lack of concentration, and sleep and eating disorders because these symptoms in the long run attract the attention of parents and sometimes teachers. While the depressed child has long suffered from it. If parents and teachers recognize the symptoms of depression and are sensitive to it, they will treat their child much sooner, and this early treatment will prevent future consequences.
Cause of depression in children
Why and how do children get depressed?
Depression in children can have genetic, psychological, biological or environmental causes. If there is a history of depression in a child’s first-degree relatives, there may be a cause for depression due to differences in hormone and biochemical levels in the body, but this alone is not enough to cause depression because as we all know, everyone has a family history. They are depressed, not necessarily depressed, and the onset of symptoms depends on the individual’s psychological factors, the parent-child relationship, the child’s beliefs about himself or herself and the world in which he or she lives, as well as the parent’s mental state.
Humiliating and comparative parents create in the child the belief of being bad and unlovable and create the ground for his depression in the coming years. Other risk factors for depression in children include stressful life events , lack of effective coping skills, and inappropriate family environment.
But not every child and teenager who is tired and bored for a few days is depressed. In order to suspect this disorder, the symptoms must be severe and at least a few of the symptoms listed must be present at the same time for at least 2 weeks. Diagnosing depression is a delicate task that requires skill and experience.
16 signs of depression in children that parents and teachers should pay attention to
If parents and schoolchildren notice these symptoms in their child or teen, they should take him or her to a psychologist or psychiatrist for further examination:
1- He no longer enjoys his favorite hobbies and hobbies.
2- He spends most of the day in sadness, sadness and despair.
3- He does not have the patience and energy to do his work
4. Permanent abdominal pain , headache , nausea and complaints while under examination and investigation do not have a physical problem.
5- Has no desire to communicate with his peers and prefers solitude and seclusion.
6- It is aggressive and irritable (in fact, aggression is a mask that hides the child’s depression behind it.)
7. Talks about suicide or has suicidal thoughts.
8- He has low self-confidence and has a negative attitude towards himself
9- He is insensitive to everything.
10- There are obvious and unwanted weight changes
11- Sleep disorders bother him, whether he sleeps a lot or sleeps poorly.
12- The problem of academic failure and lack of concentration.
13. Constant fatigue and depleted energy have disrupted his life.
14- He feels guilty.
15- Increases self-sensitivity and focuses on his disabilities.
16. He has frequent absences from school and does not do his homework.
