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Take note especially if these symptoms last two weeks or longer, then get help.
In young children
• Loses interest in regular activities.
• Cries more easily or becomes clingy.
• Can’t concentrate on games or in school.
• Sleeping or eating patterns, or moods, change.
• Gets angry or defiant.
• Appears healthy but complains of feeling ill.
In adolescents
• Is very tired or can’t sleep.
• Engages in harmful behavior.
• Isolates from family and friends.
• Becomes surly with parents.
• Has a drop in academic performance.
• Loses or gains weight.
“Sometimes we can miss signs of depression or overlook behaviors because we just say, ‘He’s a teenager’ or ‘She’s just going through terrible 2s,’ ” said Douglas Ronsheim, a Presbyterian minister, licensed marriage and family therapist, and executive director of the American Association of Pastoral Counselors.
And sometimes signs just aren’t obvious. But experts say to look especially for noticeable changes in daily activities, symptoms that last several weeks or more, or symptoms that interfere with the ability to operate well at home, with friends or in school—and then seek professional help immediately. Below are some recognized signs of depression, many of which can be exhibited by either children or teens.
In children:
• Is listless.
• Has more temper tantrums.
• Switches into rage very easily.
• Complains of boredom.
• Is easily discouraged.
• Is more likely to get into scuffles.
• Can’t sit still.
• Mouths off at teachers a lot.
• Has long-term sadness or moodiness.
• Eating patterns change (sometimes weight loss in young children is more common).
• Sleeping patterns change (whether having difficulty falling asleep or waking up and not being able to go back to sleep).
• Socializing patterns with kids or family change.
• Schoolwork or grades change.
• Has thoughts or threats of suicide.
• Has low self-esteem.
• Has feelings of guilt or a sense of hopelessness.
• Has outbursts of shouting, complaining or unexplained irritability.
• Expresses fear or anxiety.
• Refuses to cooperate.
In adolescents:
• Lacks interest in things he or she used to love (such as reading or sports).
• Is more apt to engage in harmful behavior (such as self-mutilation, drinking or using drugs, speeding or shoplifting).
• Has difficulty concentrating.
• Gets stuck on certain thoughts.
• Lacks energy.
• Has a change in appetite.
• Has outbursts of crying.
• Has mood changes or prolonged sadness.
• Has a sense of just feeling “stuck” or “numb.”
• Is irrational or belligerent.
• Acts out in behavior that’s unusual.
• Has thoughts or threats of suicide.
• Has low self-esteem.
• Has feelings of guilt or a sense of hopelessness.
Parents are packing lunches again and sending their backpack-laden kids back to school. They wonder if their child will make friends. They wonder if their child will be treated kindly and act the same to others. And after a decade’s barrage of violence at schools, they wonder, even, if their child will be safe.
Not as many, most likely, wonder if their child will be diagnosed with depression or a related mental illness. But research shows that two teens in every classroom of 24 experienced a major depressive episode in the past year, and children as young as preschoolers show signs.
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| “BP Me” by Kareem, age 13, from The Storm in my Brain: Kids and Mood Disorders, 2003. |
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© 2013 Augsburg Fortress, Publishers
