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Practical ideas for everyday parenting
As a parent who has navigated the challenges of depression while raising my young children, I understand the delicate balance required to explain mental health struggles in a way that's honest yet appropriate. That's why I've created this guide to help other parents in similar situations communicate effectively with their children about depression.
Depression is not an easy illness to have. And no one understands how a person feels unless they themselves have experienced it or lived with it. Nowadays, depression has become more of an acceptable subject or topic of discussion, unlike in the past, when a person having depression was seen as taboo or the person was crazy and needs to go to the "looney bin".
Now can you imagine, if you are a parent experiencing depression, there are generally feelings of being overwhelmed, anxious, stressed, numb and giving up on life. Your partner and children can feel the same way, adding confusion and feeling lost?
So I have created a video to help a parent explain this illness to a child - why mom is not the same anymore and that she has depression and what can be done to help her.
Having a family member with depression can be exhausting and seemingly neverending. But let's help our children understand what it is and to know that there are ways to help. This knowledge will empower the child, now and in the future, to not feel any animosity towards the parent with depression and towards the parent assisting.
Follow SADAG (South African Depression and Anxiety Group) and take note of contacts:
