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Parents in the US had alarmingly high rates of anxiety and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic – and that has a direct effect on kids

Lucy (Kathleen) McGoron, Assistant Professor of Child and Family Development, Wayne State University, The Conversation on

Published in Health & Fitness

For example, when parents experience depression, they often express more negative emotions – such as anger and irritability – with their children. They are also less consistent in discipline and less engaged in the parent-child relationship. As a result of these stresses at home, their children may also develop depression as well as other challenges, such as anxiety or behavioral problems.

Children of parents with high levels of anxiety are at risk for both anxiety and depression, which themselves are associated with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. And ADHD is known to be highly hereditary: One study found that approximately 50% of children with ADHD also had a parent with ADHD.

Parents’ mental well-being is influenced by the amount of stress they experience, such as economic difficulties, insufficient child care and competing pressures from work and family. When parents have social support from family, friends, their community or the school system, studies show they are less likely to struggle with anxiety or depression.

In a recent review on parental depression, researchers reported that children who are receiving mental health care often have parents with depression, and many times the parents’ depression is not being treated. Importantly, the review also found that when parents are treated for depression and see their depressive symptoms improve, their children’s psychiatric symptoms abate and overall functioning improves. It also concluded that the treatment of parent and child mental health challenges is rarely integrated.

There are, however, emerging approaches for bringing the two together, including screening for and treating both parent and child mental health challenges in pediatric primary care. While this approach to identifying and treating psychiatric conditions is new, studies show it is promising for reducing depression symptoms in both parents and children simultaneously.

When parents are not able to receive effective treatment for their psychiatric conditions because of their busy schedules, inability to afford it, stigma against mental health care or the mental health provider shortage, children are put at risk for mental health challenges too. On the flip side, when parents receive evidence-based mental health care, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, children also benefit.

Research also shows that a family-based approach to mental health care that considers parents’ needs, the family context and the parent-child relationship may best support both children and their parents.

 

So often, parents feel they need to take a back seat to what they perceive as the more important needs of their children. But just as when airline flight attendants instruct adults at the start of every flight to put their own safety mask on first, parents should know the importance of prioritizing their own well-being to promote the health of their children.

One concrete action that parents can take is to seek out family-based treatments. This may be a challenging process, but talking with their child’s pediatrician about specific referrals for this kind of care can be a good place to start. If those options are not available, parents should ensure that they are involved in their child’s mental health care and incorporate what is learned in treatment into their family’s day-to-day life. They should also seek referrals for their own mental health care as needed.

Ultimately, the children’s mental health crisis cannot be solved without also prioritizing parents. The British psychiatrist John Bowlby is widely recognized as the father of attachment theory, the study of the importance of early relationships between infants and their caregivers. Bowlby often expressed the sentiment that “a society that values its children should cherish their parents.”

This article is republished from The Conversation, an independent nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts. It was written by: Lucy (Kathleen) McGoron, Wayne State University. If you found it interesting, you could subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

Read more:
COVID-19 vaccines for children: How parents are influenced by misinformation, and how they can counter it

COVID-19 means a lot more work for families of children with disabilities, but schools can help

Lucy (Kathleen) McGoron receives funding from the Michigan Health Endowment Fund and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.


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