Can depression affect children too? Unfortunately, yes. Is your child depressed? How can you help them talk about it? Famisy has some solutions.
Who treats?
A medical prescription may be proposed by certain doctors, only if the child presents severe and lasting depression.
It is necessary to have tested other forms of treatment before coming to this point. And only a real professional, such as a child psychiatrist, will be able to prescribe antidepressants for the child.
In the end, depression in children is often a family affair and therefore concerns the whole family.
It should be taken seriously and can be a strong indicator of future typical adolescent disorders. A child who is depressed is sending a message about his or her state of mind at a particular time and is thus asking for help for the future.
The earlier in life depressive symptoms are treated, the more likely it is that other more worrying forms of depression will be reduced: risk-taking, eating disorders, and suicide attempts, which are constantly on the increase in young adults every year.
Consulting is a way to bet on the future!
Parents cannot understand their child’s mood disorders and have questions about the future.
Should they seek help? Should they take medication to help them?
It may be that a child who has had depressive disorders at one time does not necessarily develop depression as an illness.
In any case, if you suspect a depressive episode in your child, the easiest thing to do is to consult a specialist to set up appropriate help. The suffering is often major and adolescence is not far away.
We also know the devastation that untreated or undetected depression can cause in the lives of young children at the time of adolescence. Céline, the mother of a little boy aged 2 and a half, quickly consulted a specialist, an osteopath: ” his “crises” lasted 2/3 months. The solution came to me in December when I went to the osteopath (who has been following him since he was born) who told me that he was still very angry, even though it wasn’t obvious (I thought he had understood and that it had passed). So, she taught me how to channel his anger and deal with it.
She explained to me that he needed to be reassured during his tantrums and that it would be a long-term job.
Conclusion
When a kid feels comfortable discussing depression in any environment, the situation will improve for the entire family. And, once the subject of depression has been brought up, you may find that there is less stigma attached to talking openly with others when the time comes.