Depression is something that we came across on a daily basis as of now and depression in children is more than ever before, and rather than being in denial as compared to earlier days, people are coming out and trying to talk more openly about the condition.
Usually, depression seems common in someone going through a state-change in their life such as mid-life crisis, teen years and it can occur otherwise too. The state change or going in and out of one phase of life seems like an important factor among Depressed individuals.
In light of that fact, we’ve come to know that children in early ages have started to become caught up with the condition, more commonly than ever. They may not seem like it but quite a large number of children are affected by depression and on top of that, are not taken seriously.
A child can undergo stress, have a family history of depression, feels left out, undergone separation of parents and living under changed living conditions or whatnot, can show signs of depression. Their condition is usually confused with childlike sadness and overlooked for the most part and they themselves don’t know what they are going through is a little more than sadness.
According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), 3.2% of children between the age of 3 to 17 years have been suffering from depression. The condition can be diagnosed when certain signs such as:
- Loss of interest in the things of daily life like interacting with people or going out to take part in new activities, making new friends, etc.
- Keeping most of the things to themselves and not sharing much in order to maintain a close book as not to get judged for feeling a certain kind of emotion.
- Changes in eating habits can also suggest there is something wrong with the child.
- Lower levels of motivation or self-confidence can also suggest a sign of being depressed.
- Pushing away people when they intend to talk can be one of the main signs for someone depressed regardless of the age factor, so one should look out for the same as well.
There are certain risk factors when these symptoms go undiagnosed and can put the child own safety at risk such as:
- There can be a high chance of such children into developing into demotivated sad individuals who indicate self-harm or harm to anyone else.
- They are more prone to have a loner lifestyle and live a sadistic lifestyle, which is going to keep making their condition even worse.
ALSO READ: To Every Teenager of this Era, We feel you!
We can help depressed individuals at a very initial level by simple things like listening to them, being there for them or just showing pure emphatic behavior when they don’t expect it. These things might seem quite small but they make a big impact and one should take necessary steps when such individuals are spotted regardless you’re in touch with them or not.
Awareness should be out there among us common folks regarding these problems and we should be ready to help in whatever way we could. How would you try to handle if you come across such a situation? tell us in comments and maybe your comment might help someone else out there.