Childhood depression is a disorder that goes unnoticed: it is forgotten, unknown and confused with other disorders. Many people find it impossible for a child to fall into the clutches of depression: How will children be depressed if they have no responsibilities or concerns?They’ve got it all ??. According to recent research data, 1 in 100 children and 1 in 33 adolescents suffer from depression.
The most serious problem is that only 25% of children and adolescents with depression are diagnosed and treated, such a low percentage is a consequence of the fact that adults often underestimate or ignore this problem or even misdiagnose it. A common misdiagnosis is what happens when a child is diagnosed with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) rather than depression.
- Depressive symptoms are caused by certain personal vulnerabilities or reflected in certain personal vulnerabilities.
- I.
- E.
- Because they do not have certain social.
- Emotional or cognitive skills and in situations that may require high performance if the level of the person is taken into account.
- In this case the child may feel unable to respond.
- Blocked.
- All of which creates a high stress burden and a chain of negative emotions.
- Such as sadness.
- Insignificance.
- Futility.
- Fragility.
- Emptiness or danger.
- Among others.
“Depression is a prison where you are both the prisoner and the cruel jailer” – Dorthy Rowe-
From sadness to depressive disorder, there is a broad spectrum, sadness, anxiety, hostility and anger are normal, adaptive and understandable emotions that are necessary at certain times and can be reflected in behaviors, for example, fear is the emotion of danger and sadness is the emotion of loss, which are not harmful emotions in themselves : help us adapt to what happens around us, to be sure if we feel a danger or to write a story, our story, in which every loss ends up making sense.
You can’t classify emotions as a disease. All children and teens are sad at some point, they have even experienced symptoms of depression, but a depressive disorder is more than that.
It is important to know how to distinguish between sadness and possible childhood depression. To do this, we must take into account the frequency, intensity and duration of the behaviors, as well as the children’s discomfort, how it interferes with their routine (if it interferes), if the child has irritability, poor appetite, sleep disturbances. , restlessness and psychophysiological or motor symptoms.
Anger and irritability are common in childhood depression, while sadness and dismay often occur in adults; another different symptom in children is agitation; in the case of adults with depression there is a decrease in motor and mental speed, while in children, greater activation is common (for this reason, to some extent, confusion in the diagnosis of ADHD). Because of this change in symptoms, childhood depression goes unnoticed or confused with another type of behavioral problem.
Many children go to a consultation because they do not feel like doing things, they are very angry, angry, they have somatizations (headaches, stomachaches, vomiting, diarrhea, etc. ). The most reliable information that we can obtain about a child’s thoughts and emotions goes through the child. The adults in your environment will be able to better inform you about observable behaviors and specific moments.
Some vulnerability factors are a lack of social skills, a deficit in problem solving, social isolation, a negative self-image, interpersonal difficulties with family members or colleagues, and dysfunctional attitudes with thoughts of guilt. . Often the emotional state they are in is fueled by? Rumination? some thoughts, like “Everything is wrong with me, I am a mess, life is not worth it, it is my fault. “
“Always remember that you’re bigger than your situation, you’re more than anything that can happen to you. – Anthony Robbins-
We raise helpless children. One day they are rewarded and the next day they are punished for the same behavior. Facts happen around you and no one explains your origins to them. There are no limits, and they don’t teach you to tolerate and deal with frustration. It is very important to tell children that to get what we love it is necessary to strive, wait, spend time, work, make mistakes and try again.
This learning is done through personal experiences, but if we give everything ready, these rich experiences will be reduced to their minimum expression, it is then when behavior problems, tantrums, mood instability, lack of impulse control and a long ether occur .
The different elements (behaviors, objects, people?) Suppose the value we give them and that value also depends on the effort and sacrifice that has been made to convince them. Over the years, as we grow, we learn to relate our actions. to the consequences they have.
This is fundamental because it gives us a sense of control and allows for self-efficacy. Of course, not everything is in our hands, but we can do many things to lead our lives. If children do not see this relationship, they ‘will feel powerless, if you do not learn the possible results that exist in the face of your actions and if the consequences are random or diffuse, you will feel completely lost.
In theories of acquired impotence it has been shown that the most important thing is perception, that is, to realize that what we do has consequences on what we will receive next, for example, if we realize that effort is an important thing to achieve. our goals, then the effort will appear in our actions, but if the child realizes that the results depend on luck, he will assume the conviction that acting is unnecessary and unnecessary, he will become a vulnerable being. To prevent childhood depression, children should feel that what they are doing has the expected consequences for the environment and for themselves.
Dysfunctional beliefs are values on which our self-esteem is based. Do children learn distortions in their own beliefs from an early age, for example, if you’re not the first, you’ll be a loser and if you’re a loser, you’re worthless. In this way we condition our interpretation of reality and ourselves. When a child puts his or her own self-esteem into impossible ideas, sooner or later he or she is doomed to feel frustrated, depressed, incompetent, or useless because there will always be someone smarter or useless. more beautiful, because mistakes are inevitable and because you can’t be satisfied. All people.
Children need to learn from a young age to think, it is not necessary to be an absolute perfection or a complete disaster, we cannot be 100% at any time, but we cannot leave everything, life is not black and white, Grey exists and that is why there will be moments and areas of our life where it is necessary to set priorities , for example, during exam season children will learn that it is time to spend more time studying and, at the end of that period, they will be able to enjoy their friends, family and the environment in which they live longer. It is important to learn how to prioritize responsibilities and manage time based on your own decisions and consequences.
Depression is one of the main factors anticipating suicide, and ending suicide myths is a critical task in preventing suicide. 72% of depressed children and adolescents have suicidal thoughts; for children, these ideas may exist even if they don’t. verbalize them. The desires of many children are expressed not in words, but with other forms of communication, such as games or drawings. As adults, is it important to learn to read between the lines?what children express.
Here are some of the myths that exist in relation to childhood depression:
In psychological interventions, the goal is to address the risk factors and problematic behaviors associated with childhood depression. The intervention involves the child, the family, and the environment in which he or she lives. With the child or teen, different coping skills, different ways to solve. It works on problems and is given great importance to learn how to process information and manage emotional discomfort, the intention is to transform the negative automatic thoughts and self-assessments that the child can make of himself and the mute that maintain the emotional state in which he finds himself.
Parents receive tips for managing their children’s behavior, stimulating listening with empathy, controlling anger, avoiding conflict, communicating messages and feelings effectively, learning to make decisions, and changing the way they interact with family members.
In the prevention of depression in children it is essential that the unconditionality of love is present, we must never condition the condition to a specific action or characteristic of the child, it is positive that love is perceived as unconditional, as a link that survives all circumstances. In addition, there must be sensible and consistent rules, strengthening appropriate behaviors, expecting rewards, exercising intrinsic motivation, firmness in the management of coercive processes and establishing good communication.
“Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of overcoming. -Helen Keller-