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Depression & Antidepressants: The Experts’ Advice

If your child is “clinically depressed,” what can you do about it?  And are you afraid that the   “cure” might be more dangerous than the disease?  Clinical depression is a devastating and potentially dangerous level of depression that can actually lead to suicide in children and adolescents.  The good news is that psychological therapy, and the use of certain anti-depressant medications, has shown great promise in helping kids recover from depression, and in reducing the rate of suicide.  But government warnings say that the use of antidepressants can sometimes increase the risk of irritability – and sometimes, even suicide – in a small percentage of the children who take them!  What should parents do?  Join host Dr. Winnie King -- and the leading psychiatrists, researchers, and government panelists in the field -- to learn how to provide the critical help that your child needs, while safeguarding her health and her life.  We’ll also meet two teens whose depression was brought under control by antidepressants, and a third who suffered the kinds of adverse side effects that make proper oversight by parents so essential.

Guests:

Aimee Belisle, Teen who suffered with depression in high school, and diagnosed while in college
Nicole Johnson, High school senior with depression
Jame Tierney, Teen suffering from migraines who was prescribed antidepressants
Jennifer Tierney, Jame’s Mother
Cynthia Pfeffer, MD - Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Weill Medical College, Cornell University; Panelist on the FDA Panel that voted on the Black Box for
Antidepressants. (September 2004)
Kelly Posner, PhD - Head researcher for the Columbia Reassessment Study that
collected the data for the FDA
David Fassler, MD - Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist; Associate Professor at UVM. 
Published Works: Help Me ,I’m Sad; Trustee, American Psychiatric Association. 
Testified against the Black Box on behalf of the APA at the FDA hearing.
Joseph Glenmullen, MD - Clinical Instructor, Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Staff member, Harvard University Health Services; Published Works: The Antidepressant Solution: The Only Step-by-Step Guide to Safely Overcoming Antidepressant Withdrawal, Dependence, and Addiction

Tips:    

Signs of Depression in Children:

  • sadness
  • tearfulness
  • low self-esteem
  • guilt
  • decreased interest in activities
  • poor concentration
  • major change in eating or sleeping patterns
  • irritability
  • agitation
  • argumentativeness

What should a parent do if they see signs of depression?

  • Insist upon a thorough evaluation
  • Make sure medication is really necessary before it’s prescribed
  • Educate yourself about the possible side effects.

What should a parent do if their child is clinically depressed?

  • Try therapy first.
  • If child is prescribed with medication ALWAYS use therapy in conjunction with therapy.

MONITOR, MONITOR, MONITOR!
    

Resources:

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
http://www.aacap.com/

Books:

The Antidepressant Solution: The Only Step-by-step Guide to Safely Overcoming Antidepressant Withdrawal, Dependence, and Addiction By Joseph Glenmullen