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Depression isn't normally an illness that we associate with kids, but it should be, says Robert L. Hendren, D.O., past president of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP). The AACAP estimates that as many as one in 20 children and adolescents is depressed. "Another way to think about it is that, on average, at least one child in every classroom will have it," says David Fassler.
Depression can run in the family
Studies show that 25 percent of kids who have a parent who has suffered from clinical depression will experience their own episode, says Dr. Fassler. If both Mom and Dad are depressed, the risk increases to around 75 percent. Scientists aren't exactly sure of the reason for this, but one theory posits that these kids have a genetic vulnerability, which is then exacerbated by a stressful environment.
It's often masked or mimicked by other problems
"Approximately forty percent of children and adolescents with depression also have an anxiety disorder, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and about one in four has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)," says Dr. Fassler. Learning disorders are also common. Experts don't know quite how these relate to each other, but they do know that when there are coexisting conditions, it can be harder to suss out and treat each one.
Irritability can be a major clue
The biggest difference between symptoms of adults and those of children is that while adults are usually sad and withdrawn, children are easily aggravated and may have irrational outbursts, says Dr. Hendren. "Children might not recognize that they are feeling depressed," he says. "Often, they don't know how to identify this feeling and put it into words."
Kate Coyne*, a mom from South Portland, ME, initially took her daughter, Emma*, then 8, to a psychologist after a teacher said she'd been "uncharacteristically irritable" at school. "I was shocked when the psychologist said she was depressed," says Coyne. "Since Emma wasn't withdrawing or sleeping all the time -- symptoms that might have jumped out at me -- it never entered my head."
Kate Coyne*, a mom from South Portland, ME, initially took her daughter, Emma*, then 8, to a psychologist after a teacher said she'd been "uncharacteristically irritable" at school. "I was shocked when the psychologist said she was depressed," says Coyne. "Since Emma wasn't withdrawing or sleeping all the time -- symptoms that might have jumped out at me -- it never entered my head."
