Anxiety and Depression in Children

The stresses children have to deal with today have increased enormously in recent years

Mental health issues are becoming more prevalent in today’s world. This is even truer for children and teenagers. Anxiety and depression in children and teenagers has been steadily rising for the last fifty years. According to some estimates, five to eight times as many school and college students meet the criteria for diagnosis of major depression or anxiety disorder as was true half a century or more ago.

Dealing with the symptoms of anxiety or depression can have a huge impact on children and their families. For the children themselves their quality of life can be severely limited. They may no longer be able to enjoy the things they should be enjoying; school, friends, sports, family time or simply being a kid. For the parents and other siblings the impact can be detrimental as well. The other children can feel sidelined as their sibling gets extra much needed attention, they may start acting out or withdrawing. The parents’ own relationship can be put under strain dealing with a child who needs more time and attention when time is already at a premium; and sometimes trying to figure out how to deal with the anxiety or depression can cause added strain as mum and dad often have differing viewpoints. I read somewhere that as a parent you are only as happy as your unhappiest child, while this may not always be true I think for the most part it is, especially if you have a child suffering from anxiety or depression. All these things combined can lead to an unhappy family life.

"I have treated children who miss school every week due headaches and tummy aches brought on by worry and anxiety, I have treated children who as young as 5 are worried about war and what would happen to them if there was a war, I have treated children too afraid to leave their parents to go to parties or play dates. These issues are not unusual, from looking at my practice and talking to colleagues this is becoming more and more the norm rather than the exception."

Why is this happening?

The reasons for the increase in mental health issues are varied. One way to think of anxiety levels is to add up all the daily stresses we have to deal with and subtract the ways we have to cope with them, the difference is our anxiety level.

The stresses children have to deal with today have increased enormously in the last fifty years; they are more over scheduled than ever before, schools and sports are more competitive, parents are increasingly worried about financial security and children’s safety, constant access to social media means children and adults are constantly bombarded with images and stories often of a negative nature. And with all this on the increase our coping mechanisms are diminishing; children have far less downtime, this has traditionally been the time they can tune out and process what has been happening in their lives, they have much less time outside exploring nature just being kids figuring things out for themselves which helps build self esteem and decrease stress.

There are ways to help kids overcome anxiety and depression. I help children and teenagers overcome anxiety and depression so they can feel like themselves again and their parents can begin to enjoy life again. I do this using homeopathic remedies and suggesting some other life changes that can be of benefit. Homeopathy is a holistic alternative form of medicine which is gentle yet powerful and effective but never toxic or addictive. Homeopathy treats a patient on all levels; mental and emotional as well as physical. It rebalances a person, boosting their immune system and bringing them back to themselves so they can enjoy life again. It can’t get rid of all life’s stresses but it can build children up so they are better equipped to deal with everything life has to offer; the good and the bad.

Along with homeopathic remedies I also recommend patients dealing with anxiety and depression try to incorporate some of these small life changes:

Exercise: The benefits of exercise on mental health are well documented, any level of activity helps, and it has a knock on effect, the more you do the better you feel so the more you feel like doing; even something small like walking or cycling to school a few days a week can make a big difference.

Sleep: Good sleep is key to good mental health; though sometimes bedtime is when anxieties can increase, especially in children. Rubbing lavender oil (diluted in a carrier oil such as sweet almond oil) into their feet at bedtime can relax children so they can sleep more soundly.

Meditation and mindfulness: Learning meditation will teach children to understand their emotions; it helps show them how to calm their minds and focus on their breathing which can decrease anxiety, anger or sadness. Mindfulness or living in the moment shows children how to focus on the present rather than go over and over the past or worry about the future. The Mindfulness Matters CD available from www.mindfulnessmatters.ie is a great way to get them started; it is geared specifically to children.

Increasing the time kids have to play or just hang out can have massive benefits, this gives children time to just be themselves, to think things through and to learn from what has been going on in their lives, having the time to stop and think and be bored rather than constantly running from activity to activity improves children’s mental health.

To help children offload their worries and anxieties it can sometimes be useful for them to write or draw the worries and put them into a special bag, pillow case or bin. By doing this they feel like the worries are gone from their minds. There is a toy designed for this called a Worry Eater, it can be bought at www.cogsthebrainshop.ie.

Anxiety and depression are on the rise and it’s easy to become overwhelmed by statistics and studies. But there are lots of things we as parents and care givers can do to help our kids and get them on the path to good mental health for now and for their future. Homeopathic treatment is one of these things, it rebalances a person, strengthening them from within and giving them the tools and the ability to deal with whatever life throws at them."

Written by Emma Almond  a mother of 2 and a licensed homeopath living and working in Dublin; she runs her practice Almond Homeopathy from her clinic in Knocklyon and via Skype. She discovered homeopathy when looking for an alternative approach to dealing with her post natal depression. Emma uses homeopathic remedies on a daily basis for herself, her children and in her practice. Emma loves chocolate, running and reading. She runs almost daily and loves the mental and physical benefits she gets from it; after a long run she loves nothing more than sitting down with a good book, a cup of tea and a bit of chocolate!

Courtesy of: www.almondhomeopathy.com or Facebook page www.facebook.com/AlmondHomeopathy

http://www.tv3.ie/xpose/article/fitness-and-wellbeing/193444/Anxiety-and-Depression-in-Children