Is it possible for children less than 13 years old to have clinical depression? It wasn’t too long ago that doctors, and even parents, thought otherwise. As doctors and research scientists in the mental fields learn more about the way people think, as well as increasing their knowledge of medicine, it is now known that children under 13 can have depression as severely as teens or adults. Long term depression in young children appears to happen in about 5% of children according to researchers. Depression can result from long term illness, a loss, low self-esteem, anxiety disorders and attention deficit problems. It is important to take note of any changes in your young child’s behavior in order to determine depression. Some signs of depression in children under 13 might be:
Frequent sadness or crying
Feeling guilt a lot or low self esteem
Hopelessness
Changes in eating or sleeping patterns
Irritability or anger
Talk of suicide
Very poor concentration
Wanting to be alone, if previously they played with many friends
Causing trouble at school
Having one or two of these symptoms on occasion does not mean your child under 13 has severe depression. Severe depression is when a child may have several of these symptoms continuing for weeks.
Children under 13, who are suffering from severe depression, can even have thoughts of committing suicide and actually do it, despite their young age. Professional depression treatment is important for children suffering severe affects of the disease. Most parents prefer to stay away from prescription for their kids under 13 if possible, and it is only recommended as a last resort, and only in severe cases.
There are some natural homeopathic medications to try, for mild depression. Sometimes merely paying more attention to your child and displaying more love is all the natural medicine that is needed. In addition to that you can try the natural herbs Passiflora and St John’s Wort. There are some combinations of these herbs on the market specifically for kids. You will have to determine if your child has a mild case of depression or severe depression based on your observations or your medical doctor’s observation.
A decent method of treatment will usually encompass family and individual therapy for children under 13 suffering from mild to severe depression. Two popular types of individual therapy for children are:
Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT)
Focuses on individual events such as bereavement or conflict that may be the cause of continuing depression. Children are taught to work through the specific issues causing the depression.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Based on the idea that our thoughts cause our feelings and behaviors, not external things, like people, situations, and events. Children are taught to take a more positive view of life and their surroundings.
For severe depression in children under 13, a combination of the above behavioral therapies plus antidepressant medicationsometimes is warranted. There has been some caution in giving depression medications to young children since it sometimes increases thoughts of suicide. Children less than 13 years of age who may need the combination of prescription drugs and behavioral therapy are those that may have reoccurring depression symptoms, bipolar disorder, don’t have access to therapy for some reason or they have very severe symptoms that require immediate correction.
Believing in children and knowing that depression can exist in children less than 13 is important. Mild to severe depression is usually treatable and your child will be able to end therapy or medications at some point and live happily from then on.
Mark D. Jordan is a researcher and writer interested in how depression affects people and society. He recommends a good source of depression information at Types of Depression
