Depression is beyond epidemic proportions, not only in the United States but in many societies around the world. People like to blame more recent economic downturns, but these high rates of depression have been an ongoing concern for many years from before the stock markets took a dive.
If depression was the H1N1 Influenza virus (a.k.a. swine flu), no one would venture to the streets or grocery store without a face mask for fear of transmission, schools and businesses would be closed indefinitely, and medical clinics and hospital emergency rooms would be packed with people clamoring for screening and treatment.
But depression isn’t contagious like the flu – although it certainly is more debilitating and has just as much potential to kill. It doesn’t spread by sneezing and coughing, but it is still “contagious” in that people living with a significant attachment figure, whether adult-adult or parent-child, are more likely to develop depression themselves and all that comes with this illness – the hopelessness, the sorrow or anger depending on the person’s response, the suicidal thoughts and possible attempts.
Depression is pervasive in the United States, and it is devastating to families – to marital relationships and to children’s development. We know through attachment research and neuroscience that the way we are parented not only affects the behavior we use in reaction to stressful events but also changes the way our brains work and our genes express brain chemistry reactions to stress. This means that if we are parented in such a way that consistently teaches us to react poorly to stress and conditions our brain to release stress chemicals at high rates, we are literally creating a child who will grow up into an adult who is prone to depression and all that comes with it.
Our families are in crisis.
New Report Brings to Light the Impact of Parental Depression
A new report, Depression in Parents, Parenting, and Children: Opportunities to Improve Identification, Treatment, and Prevention, was released by the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine of the National Academies last week at a public briefing in Washington, D.C. Rita Brhel of Attachment Parenting International attended via webcast.
Login and read the entire article to get an insider’s view of the report, including the prevalence of depression in families, the heartbreaking effects on the children who live with a depressed parent, the recommended model of screening and treatment of parental depression, and what Attachment Parenting International is doing.
ALSO THIS WEEK on The Attached Family:
What Attachment Parenting Does for Your Child’s Future — Why a secure parent-child attachment bond is critical for your child’s adult relationships and, ultimately, success in life. PLUS, learn of a special event Attachment Parenting International is putting on for parents!- Don’t Give Up on Babywearing — Tips to help your baby adjust to being carried in a sling.
- My Dear Crying Baby — A mother’s heartfelt poem to her baby.
- Your Best Birth – A peak inside the new book by actress Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein, written as a companion to their 2008 documentary film, The Business of Being Born.
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Login details can be found on the index page of the spring issue of The Attached Family. If you’ve joined recently, contact Editor Rita Brhel for access.
NEXT WEEK on The Attached Family:
AP is for Mother, Too — How Attachment Parenting tools such as breastfeeding and bottle nursing, cosleeping, babywearing and Kangaroo Care, and responding with sensitivity can help new mothers resolve feelings of disappointment following childbirth.- PLUS 4 bonus articles for parents-to-be and parents of toddlers, children, and teens!
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