Parents, watch out for signs of depression

“WHEN I had a mental breakdown I attempted to cut myself but I was not successful,” says *Patricia, a 17-year-old schoolgirl.

The Namibian, with consent from their guardians, spoke to two pupils (under the age of 18) about how they deal with feelings of sadness.

Patricia recalled being depressed because of the pressure of school work when she was in Grade 10.

She struggled to cope with feelings of hopelessness that engulfed her, and eventually she could not pay attention during class, and started having thoughts to harm herself as a way to vent her feelings.

“My parents don’t know much about mental health,” she said.

Although she has tried to talk to her parents about her predicament, she is afraid of being a burden to them.

She confides in her aunts when she feels low because she is able to have an open conversation about mental health with them but she has also resorted to distracting herself with entertainment on YouTube.

Another pupil, who cannot be identified, said she also deals with feelings of sadness through the internet.

“Yes, sometimes I feel sad,” the pupil (13) said, adding that she also distracts herself with entertainment: “I watch YouTube and Netflix, but sometimes I talk to my mother when I feel sad,” she said.

From 2017 to 2019, a total of 36 children committed suicide, statistics by the Namibian Police show.

Nationwide, the police recorded 458 suicides between 2018 and 2019, 10 were young boys and eight were young girls.

Fifteen boys and three girls were among 465 cases of suicide recorded by the police from 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2018.

Violence in Namibia could be one reason children in Namibia are committing suicide, says psychologist Liseli Kamona.

She said the high incidence of crime has resulted in the high number of traumatic events.

“This means a large portion of the Namibian population, including children, has either directly or indirectly experienced trauma,” she added.

Kamona said trauma, whether experienced directly or indirectly, can cause significant psychological damage, especially in children.

This results in many other negative trends, including suicide.

She said children experience different stressors: pressure from school, family-related difficulties, poverty, inappropriate content in the media, neglect, and more recently, the changes caused by Covid-19.

“Because they are still developing, they might not have the capacity to understand and deal with those stressors as well as adults would,” she said.

Children’s symptoms of stress may be more subtle or exhibited in different ways from what would typically be expected.

If parents are not vigilant, they can miss these signs, dismiss or punish the child instead of dealing with them and understanding these changes.

“In certain cultures, for instance, children grow up being told not to speak when adults are speaking, not to talk too much, or that they are obedient when they listen to and do everything adults tell them,” Kamona said.

Another reason, she said, is that psychological well-being is something people do not easily speak about or acknowledge due to certain negative connotations attached to it.

“Parents and guardians must also take care of their own emotional well-being, children model our behaviour,” she added

She said parents should communicate with their children as much as possible and create a habit of speaking to them about appropriate and inappropriate behaviour.

She said children in some cases may feel that even if they speak up, would be told to be quiet and listen to their elders. As a result, they resort to friends or peers.

Stramiss says parents often overlook and downplay children’s emotions and feelings.

“As parents, guardians, caretakers, we look at our children as if they do not have any problems, challenges or worries. We look at our children as if they do not experience any anxiety, panic, sleeplessness, fear, or even depression because they do not even understand what that is and how is it possible that they can experience it,” she said.

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