Hands up if you want to stop feeling guilty about your teen’s depression? No matter how many people tell your child’s depression is not your fault, it sometimes feels impossible to believe otherwise. After all, our kids are the result of both our nature and our nurture. Who else is there to blame? For me,… Read More How to stop feeling guilty about your teen’s depression
I didn’t always talk about my kid’s struggle with depression. For a long time, I thought, “it isn’t my story to tell.” Even though it is. Getting married, having kids, nearly losing one of those kids–those events are all a part of my narrative. But for years, our situation was precarious at best. My daughter… Read More Why I talk about my kid’s struggle with depression
In December 2018, the journal Clinical Nutrition reported that those with pro-inflammatory diets were 1.4 times more likely to have depression or depressive symptoms. The finding came from 11 existing studies, involving over 100,000 participants with pro-inflammatory diets. Yet, in years of mental health care for diagnosed depression, inflammation was not something that any doctor,… Read More Does a pro-inflammatory diet cause depression?
What to do while waiting for help that actually helps your teenager is an important lesson to learn, because chances are you’ll have to wait. And while you wait, your teenager’s depression may get worse. At least that’s what happened with my daughter. She went from acknowledging she felt depressed and asking for help to… Read More What do do while waiting for help that actually helps
Depressed teenagers do not walk dogs. At least not in my experience. I thought you should know in case you were thinking about getting a dog to help improve your teenager’s depression. That’s not to say you shouldn’t go ahead and do it. Dogs really are good for our mental health. I just think it’s… Read More Depressed teenagers do not walk dogs
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), with or without medication, seems to be the go-to treatment for teenagers with moderate to severe depression. The catch is that one-on-one CBT with a psychologist or licensed clinical social worker in Toronto can cost anywhere from $150 to $225 an hour in Toronto, and appointments outside of work and school… Read More Expert Q&A: Advances in CBT with Dr. Khush Amaria
If you live with a teenager who lives with depression, you probably already know that Mother’s Day might suck. Or, it might be great. Your heart, broken and deprived, might get the lift it needs to get on with it for another day, another week, another month. It’s hard to say which way the cookie… Read More Mother’s Day might suck
It’s ok to hate depression. Depression’s a jerk. But hating Depression, at least in my experience, won’t help. When Depression first showed up at our door, I actually felt sorry for her. I told my daughter, “It’s ok, let her in. There’s plenty of room here.” I made up a bed and assured her we’d… Read More It’s ok to hate depression
How to prevent suicide on university campuses is once again in the news after another University of Toronto student was found dead in the atrium of the Bahen Centre for Information Technology. Having nearly lost my own daughter to depression at age 13, and with her university years a short skip away, the news hit… Read More How to prevent suicide on university campuses
There’s a learning curve to managing antidepressants in your teenager’s life. Things I hadn’t considered until I was faced with them. And almost as soon as I got my head around it, I found a brand new suitcase of emotional baggage to unpack, along with some unexpected practical challenges. For what it’s worth, here are… Read More There’s a learning curve to antidepressants
