Helping Kids Understand Depression
What is depression?
Depression is a serious medical illness that involves the brain. But, there is hope. Depression can be treated and you can feel better. Depression is not something that you have "made up in your head." It’s more than just feeling sad for a few days, it’s feeling "down" and "low" and "hopeless" for weeks at a time. It can happen to anyone, no matter what age you are or where you come from. Depression can make it very hard for you to care for yourself, your friend, your family, or your school work. But, there is hope. Depression can be treated and you can feel better.
Articles for Kids:
Why Am I So Sad?
Talking About Your Feelings
How can you tell if you or someone you love is depressed?Read through this list of questions, and if your answer is "yes" to many of them, then you many be suffering from depression.
1. I am really sad most of the time. 2. I don’t enjoy doing the things I’ve always enjoyed doing. 3. I don’t sleep well at night and am always restless. 4. I am always tired. I find it hard to get out of bed. 5. I don’t feel like eating much or I feel like eating all the time. 6. I have lots of aches and pains that don’t go away (that aren’t from an injury) 7. I find it hard to focus and am very forgetful. 8. I am mad at everybody and everything. 9. I feel upset and fearful--but don’t know why. 10. I don’t feel like talking to people. 11. I feel like there isn’t much point to living—nothing good is going to happen for me. 12. I don’t like myself very much. I feel bad most of the time. 13. I think about death a lot. I even think about killing myself.** **Sometimes depression can cause people to feel like killing themselves. If you are thinking about killing yourself or know someone who is talking about it, get help right away!** If you answered “yes” to many of these questions, please seek professional advice from your doctor or an adult you trust. You could be suffering from depression. Take this list to your doctor and discuss the ones that you answered “yes” to. |
But What Causes Depression?
You may want to know why you or someone you love is feeling "depressed." There may be several explanations:
1. Sometimes depression is caused by changes in the brain.
2. Often painful events or losses such as deaths can lead to depression.
3. Sometimes depression runs in the family. This means that if you are feeling depressed it could be becuase someone in your family such as a grandparent, parent, aunt, uncle, cousin, sister, or brother may have depression.
4. Although these are all common reasons that people suffer from depression, sometimes the causes of depression just aren't clear!
1. Sometimes depression is caused by changes in the brain.
2. Often painful events or losses such as deaths can lead to depression.
3. Sometimes depression runs in the family. This means that if you are feeling depressed it could be becuase someone in your family such as a grandparent, parent, aunt, uncle, cousin, sister, or brother may have depression.
4. Although these are all common reasons that people suffer from depression, sometimes the causes of depression just aren't clear!
So I Know Someone With Depression... Now What?
If your parent, family member, or friend is depressed just try to remember these things:
1. Your loved one has an illness, just like if you had a cold. They can get better if they get help or get medicine, just like you can get better from a cold.
2. You are not to blame. If your loved one is upset it isn’t because of something that you did, it is because of their illness. You have no reason to feel guilty if they are always sad or crying. You are not “failing” them if they don’t smile at you or if they don’t give you praise for doing good things. Just remember, it’s not YOU, it’s their illness so you can’t take it personally if they get mad, sad, or say mean things when they are around you.
3. You are still loved. The loved one in your life might be so caught up in their illness that they might not treat you the way you deserve, or might not tell you that they love you as often as they should, but remember that they DO love you and they need you in their lives.
4. Depression is treatable. If your loved one gets the help that they need, they can return to being their normal self again. Depression can be fixed, it just might take some time.
5. Ask for help. Talk to your parents, teacher, principle, school counsellor, family members, friends, or any adult who can get the needed help for your loved one. There are many people out there that you can turn to and trust, and they will help your loved ones and help you to deal with the troubles in your life. Professionals will talk to your loved ones to help them with their depression and give them medicine to help make them better. There are also many helplines that you can call if you need to talk to people about how you are feeling, or if you are unsure if the people in your life need help:
Kids Help Line - 1-800-668-6868
Mental Health Service Information - 1-866-531-2600
Teens Health
A resource for Parents, Teens and Kids
http://kidshealth.org/teen/your_mind/mental_health/depression.html
1. Your loved one has an illness, just like if you had a cold. They can get better if they get help or get medicine, just like you can get better from a cold.
2. You are not to blame. If your loved one is upset it isn’t because of something that you did, it is because of their illness. You have no reason to feel guilty if they are always sad or crying. You are not “failing” them if they don’t smile at you or if they don’t give you praise for doing good things. Just remember, it’s not YOU, it’s their illness so you can’t take it personally if they get mad, sad, or say mean things when they are around you.
3. You are still loved. The loved one in your life might be so caught up in their illness that they might not treat you the way you deserve, or might not tell you that they love you as often as they should, but remember that they DO love you and they need you in their lives.
4. Depression is treatable. If your loved one gets the help that they need, they can return to being their normal self again. Depression can be fixed, it just might take some time.
5. Ask for help. Talk to your parents, teacher, principle, school counsellor, family members, friends, or any adult who can get the needed help for your loved one. There are many people out there that you can turn to and trust, and they will help your loved ones and help you to deal with the troubles in your life. Professionals will talk to your loved ones to help them with their depression and give them medicine to help make them better. There are also many helplines that you can call if you need to talk to people about how you are feeling, or if you are unsure if the people in your life need help:
Kids Help Line - 1-800-668-6868
Mental Health Service Information - 1-866-531-2600
Teens Health
A resource for Parents, Teens and Kids
http://kidshealth.org/teen/your_mind/mental_health/depression.html
Here's a few stories from kids who have struggled with depression in their lives...
Rob's Story:"At first I was feeling sad all the time, even though I had no reason to be. Then the sadness turned into anger, and I started having fights with my family and friends. I felt really bad about myself, like I wasn’t good enough for anyone. It got so bad that I wished I would go to bed and never wake up. My older brother, who I always looked up to, saw that I wasn’t acting like my usual self. He told me straight out that I seemed depressed and that I should talk to a doctor about it. I hate going to the doctor. I thought, "No way am I going in for this." But after a few weeks, I started having problems at school too. Sometimes I wouldn’t show up because I wasn’t able to sleep the night before. I saw a doctor at the health clinic. He told me I had a common illness called depression and that treatment could help. So I started to see a therapist each week for "talk" therapy. This treatment helps me learn to control depression in my everyday life. It has taken some time, but I’m finally feeling like myself again."
Resources from this page taken from 4therapy.com |
Alex, 10-years-oldHe lives with his mother and grandmother. His parents separated when
he was six. Alex's teacher reports that he is in danger of failing, that he becomes preoccupied, often staring out the window, and seldom finishes his work. Alex has stated that the other children in the class are much smarter than he is. He seldom attends Boy Scout meetings or plays baseball, which he used to enjoy. When he gets home each afternoon, he watches television and eats all the cookies he can find. He usually telephones his mother to make sure she's all right and then goes to bed until his mother comes home. "I don't have any reason to stay up; nothing good is going to happen," he said. Alex was suffering from depression, he needed to get help. |