Depression is one of the most common mental disorders that people used to take as a joke in the past. If someone admits to having this illness, a tactless person may say, “Not true. You’re just sad – it will pass.” You may also hear accusations from others about lying to gain sympathy from everyone. Then, they only believe it once the depressed individual shows signs of self-harming or, worse, suicidal tendencies.
The thing is, millions of people across the globe turn out to have depression. Its poison has now reached children whose ages are between six and 17, and that is what’s more worrying than anything.
Here are some of the reasons why even kids are prone to getting depressed include:
- Lack Of Emotional Outlet
Some parents are stricter than the others when it comes to activities their offspring can enjoy. While kids usually go to playdates, the children of the former are merely allowed to play with their siblings. Even if their interest is in learning how to use drums, they cannot argue if the parents enroll them in violin classes instead.
In reality, the kids need to be able to choose the extracurricular activities they will try. That is supposed to be their way to de-stress from everything physically and emotionally. In case going to those lessons feel more like a chore for them, then they don’t exactly have an outlet to relieve their stress and emotions. Hence, it’s quite effortless for depression to enter their system (read more about it in www.mother.ly).
- Self-Isolation
Parks and playgrounds are typically quiet in some neighborhoods where many kids live. It isn’t because the local authorities banned them from going there. It is because they prefer to stay at home, watch YouTube, and play video games all day long, primarily during the weekends or summer break.
The disadvantage of their lack of interest in going out is that these kids are effectively isolating themselves from the world. They have acquaintances from school, not real friends. They say hi to familiar faces, but they don’t stay long enough to catch up with anyone. Due to that, if something negative occurs in their life, the children do not have people to turn to for advice.
- Social Influence
Parents tend to be picky with the types of kids that their children can hang out with daily. Considering the family is deeply involved in church, for instance, they encourage the little ones to befriend fellow churchgoers. If they want a kid who excels in everything, their friends should be straight-A students or budding sports superstars.
What parents can never prepare for is the possibility that these kids who look normal on the outside might have negative habits that their offspring can adopt, e.g., cutting, thinking of death, et cetera. Once they feel sad or stressed out, they use a blade to cut their skin. No one sees them immediately since the self-harming kids are typically smart enough to do it on hidden body parts. The more your children hang out with them, the higher is the likelihood that they’ll use the same coping mechanism and eventually go down the depression lane.
We can talk about more causes of depression in kids, but the ones mentioned above require your attention the most now. The basic idea here is that the youngsters experience extreme bouts of sadness and hopelessness early because they either feel alone or are unable to express their emotions. If you can assure them all the time that you are always available to chat or listen, then it may give the children a more significant opportunity to fight depression.
