Depression is not only observed in adults. Children and adolescents could get depressed as well. It’s known that 5% of the children, 5-10% of the adolescents are exposed to depression.
Depression is defined as a disease that prevents the child or the adolescent from establishing various functions whereas depression feelings remains stable.
The risk of getting depressed is higher in children under stress, going through loss, having disorder of attention, comprehension, behaviour or anxiety. Family related tendency is important in depression progress as well.
SYMPTOMS
The symptoms of children and adolescents getting depressed may be different from those of adults. It’s recommended that you take an expert’s advice if there exists one or more of the depression symptoms in your children for a long time.
· Frequently crying and being sorry
· Hopelessness
· Reducing attention in activities or getting no pleasure from activities that were done before with pleasure
· Constant boredom, lack of energy
· Social isolation, lack of communication
· Lack of self- respect and feeling of guilt
· Oversensation in failure or rejection issues
· Increase in anger, hostility, resentment
· Having problems in relationships
· Frequent physical complaints like headache, stomachache
· Decrease in success in school and attendance at school
· Lack of concentration
· Great changes in habits like sleeping and eating
· Claims or attempts to run away from home
· Expressions or thoughts of suicide or hurting one’s self
A child who used to play with friends may come to spend time alone and have interest in nothing at all. The things once used to enjoy one’s self may become less interesting or have no meaning at all for a child in depression. They may say that they’re mean, not loved and blame themselves frequently. With self- respect, they may be lack of self- confidence and be conservative. Children and adolescents in depression may want to die or mention suicide. The risk of suicide increases in children and adolescents in depression. They may apply to smoking, alcohol or drugs to make themselves feel fine.
Children and adolescents causing troubles at home or school may be going through depression. For the reason the little children would not seem sorry all the time, parents and teachers may not understand that the troublesome behaviours are symptoms of depression. Hyper-activity, harshness, frequent crying may be symptoms of depression in little children. When asked directly, some children may express that they are unhappy or sorry. In little children and girls in adolescence, the symptoms of depression are seen as mostly physical complaints like stomachache or headache. Physical symptoms are frequently seen in children who are lack of self- confidence about school, insufficience in establishing relationships and having problems in getting independant from parents. Symptoms like headache or stomachache may get condensed while going to school in the morning.
EARLY DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT IS IMPORTANT
Early diagnosis and treatment is quite important in children going through depression. Depression is a real disease that really requires professional help. A developed treatment usually involves application of therapy both to the person and the family. For example, cognitive behaviour therapy and personal psychotherapy especially are important as personal therapy methods in depression treatment in children.
Treatment may require usage of antidepressing medication. Recently produced new antidepressing medications could be used with little children in safety and do not have properties like addictivity. For help, it’s essential to apply to a expert in children and adolescents’ mental health to diagnose and treat the depression in children and adolescents.
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