Alert signs
-Before 6 years of age, minors may notice irritability, tantrums, school phobia, pain, somatic complaints, enuresis. . .
-From 7 years to puberty: apathy, irritability, aggressiveness, lack of concentration, decreased school performance, sleep disorders, increased or decreased appetite, somatic disorders. . .
-Adolescence: Defiant and negative about the rules, irritability and aggressiveness, social isolation and self-esteem problems. You expose yourself to risky situations such as the abuse of alcohol or other substances. They express feelings of little worth, despair, difficulty concentrating, frequent crying, weight gain or loss, change in appetite, sleep disorder, fatigue. . . Sometimes they may have thoughts about suicide or self-harm.
Depression affects 300 million people in the world. In Spain, more than 2 million suffer from it, according to WHO data. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines depression as a mental health disorder characterized by the presence of “sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or lack of self-esteem, affecting sleep or appetite, feeling of tiredness and lack of concentration »that is maintained over time. This disorder can affect the day-to-day development of people who suffer from it, affecting their work and academic performance and greatly hindering the development of basic tasks.
During confinement, 43% of the population has experienced depressive feelings. Based on the entire crisis experienced by covid-19, the Spanish Society of Biological Psychiatry estimates that depressive disorders can increase up to 20%, becoming the main mental health problem in 2050.
The five symptoms of suspicion
Olimpia Bohiges, a psychologist at Ita Previ Alicante, explains that «for the diagnosis of depression, the person must experience 5 or more of the following symptoms for 2 weeks: depressed mood most of the day, loss of interest in activities that Before we liked them, weight gain or loss, insomnia or hypersomnia, concentration problems, feelings of guilt, suicidal thoughts, agitation, fatigue or loss of energy ».
But beware, depression is not a mental disorder that only adults experience. “Less than half of the children and adolescents who suffer from depression are correctly diagnosed. Symptoms are usually minimized by parents, even confusing them with behaviors typical of the childhood or adolescent life stage “, says Ester Ricós, a psychologist at Ita Argentona. «Childhood depression is a psychiatric illness that often goes unnoticed and the most common mood disorder in childhood and adolescence. It is not a myth, but a disease whose prevalence is increasing “, explains the psychologist.
The WHO estimates that 2% of children aged 6 to 12 suffer from depression. Increasing from 4 to 6% in the case of preadolescents from 12 to 14 years old. Early diagnosis and action in the initial phases of the disorder is essential to guarantee the success of the treatment, reducing the impact of the disorder on the daily life of children and adolescents.
