I'm looking for other parents of children suffering from depression, especially young children. My son is only 7. I didn't have much luck on the depression message board. It's a great place for me to talk and get support for my own depression but I need to have someone in my situation to talk to. I would also appreciate any suggestions on other websites to look in. This is the best board I found...and am very glad I did find this site.

Thanks

Just tried a search for pediatric depression resource groups and found only one .org that includes childhood depression but as a subsection of bipolar disorder. According to their information, childhood depression is sometimes an early indication for BPD.

National Alliance for the Mentally Ill a non-profit organization for neurological, developmental, cognitive, pyschological and emotional disorders.
http://www.nami.org/helpline/depression-child.html

Thanks! That was so sweet of you to do some more research for me! Actually, my sons diagnosis is dysthemia which means if we don't do anything he's likely to be a drug or alcohol abuser if he doesn't commit suicide before then. Not quite as bad as bipolar, in my opinion, and easier to treat.

Thanks again!

i am in the field of mental health and am a counselor....can you tell me why your son is depressed and why someone would give him a diagnosis of depression at the age of 9. He is too young for that kinda of diagnosis.

He was given tests for depression, anxiety, anger, suicidal tendencies, ADHD, IQ, and some others. He has abnormally high depression and anxiety. He internalizes anger and talks about hurting himself or wanting to die at least twice per week. He hates everything about himself, doesn't feel like he's "fit for this or any family", and expects himself to be perfect. His IQ was tested at 118, but because of his depression it is probably higher, yet his emotional level is around that of a 4 year old. He believes there are two emotions, anger and happiness, therefore, if I'm not happy, I'm angry. If I criticize him in the least little bit he thinks I'm mad at him and spirals into the "I hate myself" whirlpool. He was diagnosed with dysthemia, possibly secondary to ADHD, but his testing wasn't definative. His psychiatrist wants to treat him for depression first to see if we can get that under control then we can retest him for ADHD to get a better idea if that is the main problem. I don't think he's ADHD, I think he's 7 years old (he's not 9 http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif) and his depression keeps him from concentrating like he should. He's a daydreamer like me and tends to figit, but listens a lot better than it seems by looking at him. There is only about 2% of the population that has dysthemia. I've read everything I can get a hold of on this disorder and it sounds like that's absolutely what he has. I'm no dummy and can understand medical jornals and text, so I feel confident in my assertions that this is what he has.

Depression, anxiety, and ADHD are prevalent in both my family and my husband's, so I feel there is a genetic influence there. I also suffer from depression regulary, however it lasts no more than a couple days and it's not incapacitating.

I understand your doubt that a 7 year old could have a dx of depression, but if you knew him from the day he was born until now, you'd see it. That's how long it took me to get some help for him. Maybe if I'd sought help from the mental health community sooner he wouldn't be as bad as he is. School is especially hard for him in that he tends to allow himself to be bullied and won't react at all. He just takes it without objecting. I talk with him about his days and he never told me about this. We found out from his teachers. He also says he has no friends, but interacts with his classmates and they like him a lot. I've seen them all greet him enthusiastically when he returns from appointments.

I could go on and on about him from his feelings of persecution, to not believing we love him. In my defense, we are an affectionate family. We give hugs, kisses and words of appreciation and love as all families should. My son just has a problem believing we actually feel like that about him. He believes what he believes, and regardless of what proof we show him he will not be convinced otherwise. On the bright side, he doesn't let others get him in trouble or talk him into doing something he knows is wrong. He is a good kid and tries very hard, he just can't live up to his own expectations.

In short, that's why he was diagnosed with depression. http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/gabby.gif

can i suggest that he meditates that actually act out his anger such as buying a punching bag..and hitting it over and over...alot of times depression is anger directed at self instead of others so he nees to get his anger out...it will be healthier for him....i also suggest he meditate and use this time to again express his anger by creating a guided visualization of hitting something in his mind whatever it is....for the day if he got into an agrument with a child then in his meditation he should be using something like a sledgehammer and hit this person over nad over...but only in his mind.....his depression sounds like it is so big that it encompasses any other feelings he may be experiencing and unfortunatley it does sound like anger or sadness...there is no room for anything else.....i have had bipolar nad depression most of my life...i have been in therapy for over 10 years and am also a counselor the only thing that helped significantly was meditation on a daily practice and now i have been able to significantly lower my medication to half in a matter of 6 months....so again look into holisitc as well as traditional ways to help your soon......althought depression is a chemcial disease and herdiatary the mind is also a very powerful device that we can use to combate illnesses....if you have anger and you don't get it out then it will eat you up...good luck

Here's another link for you; it's a therapy plan for dysthemia [Psychiatry Dept at Oxford, U.K.]:
http://www.psychiatry.ox.ac.uk/cebmh/whoguidemhpcuk/disorders/f32.html

Canyon and Jay, thanks for the great ideas you've given me. I'll bring them up at our next counseling session. I especially like the meditation idea. I've tried to teach him deep breathing but he has such a hard time calming down when he gets really upset or stressed. I think with some practice he can get the hang of it and use it on his own when I'm not around.

I've been teaching him how to cook and that makes him feel good about himself. He loves watching Food Network, especially Emeril, and wants to be a chef. I've also given him more responsibilities around the house. I'm one of those people who can do everything better myself in the first place so why make myself finish up what others mess up. I've been working on that problem. I even let my 3 year old help me with the dishes, even though I had to wash them again later. What that has to do with anything is beyond me. I think I got side-tracked.

Anyway, thanks again for the suggestions. They are really helpful.

Hi, just a thought...I once saw a programme on Oprah about a kid who was just over the top hyper-active etc they finally discovered he was lacking some chemical or a mineral in the brain and once discovered he was a different child. I wish your problem was this easy to cure.

I, too, had a child with "depression" and ADHD. I say "HAD" because he hung himself on August 13th. The only thing I would like to add to this dialog is that EFFEXOR XR is NOT approved by the FDA for children under the age of 18. He had been put on mega doses (225 mg) by a doctor who says he did his own clinical studies and found that ADHD responded better at high doses. My 10 year old son became withdrawn, what I interpreted as calming down...but he was doing strange things. All I can say is if you can manage the problem without drugs, do so. Kids don't know how to say "mommy, I think I am going to kill myself today." They do it much more subtly. Watch for stomach aches or headaches and get the child to an ER ASAP...don't leave them alone for ANY length of time when they are talking or appearing to "come clean" in being honest about all parts of their life. If it doesn't seem like it is them, it probably isn't. This mom is hurting, I don't want anyone else to lose a precious baby to bad doctoring. Listen to the children very closely. Don't discount anything they say.