Depression
Depression occurs when sad feelings do not go away, and when they overwhelm a person and stop them from doing the things they normally do. It used to be thought that children and young people couldn't get depressed, but in fact they can, they may just show it in a different way to adults.
Some of the things that can cause children and young people to become depressed include:- Parents arguing
- Divorce or separation of their parents
- The death of someone close to them
- Feeling rejected or left out within the family
- Problems with school work or exam pressure
- Changing school or moving home
- Friendship problems
- Physical illness in themselves or a career
- Poverty or homelessness
Depression is not always the easiest problem to spot or get a child to admit to. Some children can talk about feeling unhappy, but others are only able to show how they feel through the way they behave.
- Finding it hard to concentrate, losing interest in schoolwork and play
- Refusing to go to school, or playing truant
- Constantly complaining of feeling bored or lonely, even when they have friends
- Irritability and moodiness beyond the normal range
- Tearfulness
- Defiance or violent outbursts
- Lack of confidence and blaming themselves if things go wrong
- Disruptive behaviour at school, bullying, stealing or doing other things that lead to them being punished
- Becoming very withdrawn
- Self-injury or drinking or taking drugs to excess
- Sleeping very little or too much
- Younger children may appear to take backwards steps in their development, for example with toilet training or eating