Understanding Childhood Depression

Childhood depression is different from everyday blues and mood swings. It resembles emotional dips which can be pervasive and long-lasting. It may even get dangerous and life-threatening when overlooked by parents. Depression has really strong symptoms which need to be identified as early as possible. It can also be termed as serious mental health condition that needs medical assessment and treatment.

Identifying depression

The symptoms of depression vary from child to child. Some of the prime symptoms of persistent depression are sadness, irritability, anger etc. Some of the others are –

• Social withdrawal- Loss of interest in playing and enjoying with friends and family 

• Feeling worthlessness, hopelessness and low self-esteem – Child may repeatedly say extreme words about one-self like –‘I am bad. I am stupid’ etc

• Physical discomfort or problems like headache, stomach ache or other physical pains etc. 

• Change in eating pattern - appetite may increase or decrease

• Vocal or anger outburst and excessive crying

• Difficulty in concentrating

• Changes in sleep pattern - sleeplessness or excessive sleep

• Difficulty in concentrating

• Fatigue and low energy

Factors that may cause depression

There may be more than one cause for depression. It is the result of several factors. Generally, depression is usually caused due to lowered levels of neurotransmitters in the brain, both in adults and children. This limits person’s ability to feel good.

There are also genetic factors which may be responsible for depression. Certain drastic events such as death of a loved one, separation of a friend can become reasons of depression. In teen years, break up may be one of the biggest reasons of depression in children. Along with that, chronic illness can also contribute to depression or side –effects of certain medicinal intake.

Treatment

Psychotherapy (counseling) : Child psychiatrist or psychologist through counseling can help in identifying right cause of depression. May further evaluate degree of depression and plan treatment accordingly. The counselor might prescribe counseling and therapy sessions of child with family and friends.

Medication: Usually doctor may suggest psychotherapy first and consider antidepressant medicine as an additional option if there is no improvement in condition.

Combination of psychotherapy and medication is most effective to successfully treat childhood depression. Remember, not to terminate your child's treatment till he/she is fully cured. Early detection is the key of treating depression in kids. Type of treatment also depends on child’s age and maturity. Therefore, choosing right treatment and doctor is highly important.

SAVE THE GIRL CHILD

“A daughter is the happy memories of the past, the joyful moments of the present, and promise of the future.” Anonymous

This quotation was printed on a card I received for a baby girl shower party recently. I was overwhelmed with pride and love for a girl child. But this feeling of pride was soon overshadowed by a question my niece asked me a little later. She asked me very innocently that why her best friend, our maid’s daughter Neeta, never went to a school. A few days ahead of this, she asked me that why Neeta’s mother, Susheela was persistently ill and on leave. I was at my wit’s end. 

Susheela got married five years back to a local Chai wala and Neeta were born to her soon after a year of the wedlock. Her in-laws were awfully unhappy FROM HER over the birth of a girl child. Since then she has had multiple miscarriages in a pursuit to have a baby boy. Because of this her health and work suffered tremendously.

Female Infanticide: A Disgrace

While writing this article, I am reminded of an old prehistoric Indian proverb, “A home without a daughter is like a body without soul”. Back then, the birth of a girl child was compared to the arrival of goddesses like Lakshmi and Saraswati.  However, things changed after a few invasions on India, inter cultural exchange and extreme poverty. Suddenly, the birth of a girl child was considered inauspicious, a curse, a lifelong burden and this ailing conviction is still very much ubiquitous. 

Sex determination is a criminal act under the Indian jurisdiction but still people manage to get the sex checked and the unborn baby is aborted heartlessly. Regrettably, this practice is very common in even the affluent and rich families as the “male” is considered as an actual, deserving heir to the family’s name and glory! Appalling!!

Nurture Her

Even if a girl child is not aborted and given the right to be born and live, then also she has to be taken care off in the same way as any boy.

Basic Education 

It is understandable that in a poor and developing nation like India, access to education and that too by girls is exceedingly impossible. But the need of the hour is AWARENESS! Government of India has initiated many schemes under the “Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan” or “Education for All” where, every child is entitled to a primary education (free) from the age of 6 to 14 years. This program especially reaches out to the females by stressing the institutes to provide free textbook to the girls, provision for separate toilets, back to school camps for out-of –schools girls, etc. Many NGO's are also taking initiative to  provide education to girl child in India through 'Project Shakti', promoted by Sparsh.  As a parent and more than that as a responsible citizen, it is our moral duty to ensure that every single girl in our family, extended family, social circle, girls who are working for us, maid’s daughters etc. are entitled to this right to education and must be encourage and helped, to avail it.

Health and Nutrition

Every girl has a right to get balanced nutritious diet and safe sanitary conditions, access to hospitals and doctors during illness and a right to rest. It is seen in many poor households that the girl child is deprived of an occasional fruit and a milk drink at the cost of giving it to her brother. This is criminal. We, the educated and well read people should reach out to these people and counsel them that by doing such acts, they are being unreasonably prejudiced.

Child Marriage

In India, there are many rural areas where girls are married off at a pretty young age resulting in brutal assassination of the childhood, unhealthy reproductive, psychological and over all well being of a girl. Marrying off a girl before the age of 18 years is stringently forbidden by law but the lack of political will and intervention, subservience of a girl’s family are some of the contributing factors because of which this practice is flourishing full throttle. We as a responsible citizen should report any such happening to the police and if you get to know about such marriages in future, try reasoning with the parents of both sides. Good sense might prevail.

Your take

You might be excruciatingly involved in your family and job but life is not just about taking care of your own needs, it is also about extending your help to those who are in dire need of it. Join some NGO and impart a skill to these little girls. Try contributing clothes and books. Discourage your friends and family members in hiring young maids. If you have any maid, teach her!  

Saving a girl doesn’t only mean that she has to take birth only, she has to be taken care off, fed well, should be given primary education or at least some vocational training, should be protected and most importantly, she should be loved.

Spread the word that female infanticide is unlawful and ethically terrible and girls are to be cherished, not to be discarded!!

Famous People With Dyslexia Who Strived To Overcome Their Weakness

There are famous personalities in almost all fields, who have suffered from dyslexia and have strived to make their mark in the respective fields. Be it sports, entertainment, politics and academia. These are some of the most brilliant thinkers and artists with extraordinary will and determination.Dyslexia is a form of learning disability that weakens person’s ability to comprehend accurately and speak fluently when reading and communicating.  It poses difficulty in phonological decoding, phonological awareness, orthographic coding, auditory short-term memory and rapid naming. It is believed that dyslexia affects almost 5 to 10 percent of population. There are three subtypes of dyslexia: auditory, visual and attention related. The most common form of dyslexia is reading disability. One needs to understand that just because a student is diagnosed with learning disability doesn't mean that he or she can't succeed in the world.

Some of the famous people who belong to this league are - Sylvester Stallone, Cher, Tom Cruise, Mozart and Robin Williams; enlisted as being famous in the field of art. Tom Cruise, very popular Hollywood actor, struggled with his disability. He admits that he has grown up with reading disability, where he faced problem with written words appearing to be omitted, distorted and modified.

Napoleon Bonaparte is also known to be afflicted with dyslexia. Another great personality was Winston Churchill, who led Great Britain during World War II. He suffered from speech impediment from the childhood. He could not learn alphabet until the age of nine and was unable to read till the age of twelve.

One of the geniuses and greatest mathematician - Albert Einstein also suffered from this disability. He was a 'below average' student at school. He could not speak until he was three and was very weak in Math.  Other known geniuses are - Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison. Edison found difficulty in reading until he was twelve and in writing, even after that. Some of the famous business Entrepreneurs like Richard Branson, David Neeleman and Charles Schwab were also dyslexics. The list is endless but all have one thing in common their determination to excel fighting all odds.

Some of the common symptoms in dyslexics are - feelings of shame, fear, depression and loneliness.  Recent bollywood movie - "Taarein Zameen Par", highlighted learning disabilities and helped in creating awareness about it.However, this disorder can be treated by the use of proper teaching methods and therapy. By simply providing early assistance in studies, like helping a dyslexic child to solve small math problem or word associated problems.

Sparsh Children Dazzle on World Disability Day

In India over 7 million people are disabled and unfortunately no special policies are crafted for this particular challenged segment, which still remains oppressed and isolated. Disabled people are often victim of discrimination. It is the society which needs to take adequate steps to involve them in the mainstream; making them part of the social, political, economic and cultural aspects of the community.

Every year 3rd December is observed as International Disability Day or World Disability Day. Several schools, NGO’s, government bodies and even corporate houses organize numerous events to express their solidarity with disabled people.

On this day, Sparsh an NGO organized an event to encourage the abilities of the differently abled and to honor their talents. The motive of the event was to make people aware of the fact that even special children have special talents and also, to draw the attention of the policy makers towards the issues and problems faced by disabled in the society and also to increase public awareness about it.

Present at the event were eminent guests including Smt. Arti Mehra (Former Mayor, Delhi) and Mrs. Kiran Chopra (Founder, Varisht Nagrik Kesari Club) who gave an awe-inspiring speech stimulating the audiences. Chairperson of Presidium and Mother’s Pride and Chief mentor of Sparsh, Mrs. Sudha Gupta and President of Sparsh, Mr M.P Singh also expressed their happiness of being committed towards such a special cause.

Special children of Sparsh gave extraordinary performance on ‘Jai Ho’ that left audience mesmerized. Their presentation touched the hearts of the parents and relatives of the special children. Many of them were proud to see their child performing so brilliantly on the stage.

The girls of 'Project Shakti' also enthralled everyone with their beautifully choreographed performance. The children of Savera Special School were awarded with medals for winning various positions in the Sport’s event held recently at the school. Also, they were rewarded for making noteworthy efforts in making Touch of Heaven products.

The applause was never ending as audience supported and encouraged the special children on the stage. The beautiful expressions on the faces of these special children created an aura of happiness.The show gracefully concluded with refreshments for everyone. The efforts and dedication of the children was admired by everyone and the message behind World Disability Day was well delivered.

Invite for World Disability Day

It is with great pleasure that Sparsh NGO for unprivileged invites you to the World Disability Day celebration on 3rd December' 2011, with the aim to empower the underprivileged children.

Your presence will make a huge difference in the lives of these special children inspiring them to become a productive member of the society.

Come and show your solidarity.

Teaching Tips For ADHD students

ADHD child at school may face trouble paying attention, regulating behavior and even sitting still in the class at times. Generally you may find his/her desk will often be messy and may even lose important papers and assignments. 

ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity disorder is a chronic condition, which may interfere with daily life, causing problems in school life of children and as well as at home. If it is not treated on time, it can slow down social, emotional and academic growth of the child.

By following few guidelines, educators can impart teaching in a better way to ADHD students -

• Teachers must try to break complex instructions into small and simpler parts.
• Educators need to pay extra focus on assignments of ADHD children and need to keep track of  homework.
• Don’t overburden or pressurize ADHD child. Provide regular and frequent breaks.
• Try and seat the child away from distractions and make him sit next to students who are positive role models.
• Make the child feel comfortable in the group settings. As children with ADHD easily get distracted in large groups.
• Make ADHD students learn subjects with help of color coding method. Associate each subject with a particular colour. Use certain color for subject’s textbook cover and on the folder or workbook for that subject.
• Develop a reward system for in-school work and homework completion.
• Teachers can distribute certain prizes and awards for active and accurate participation by the student.
• Keep record of the timelines on the board each day. Provide due dates for assignments every time.
• Adapt Curriculum and Instruction- Provide more direct instruction and as much one-on-one instruction as possible. Use guided instruction.
• Giving Assignments- Give out only one task at a time. Monitor frequently. Maintain a supportive attitude.

Tips on Improving Social Skills:

• Students with short attention span problems experience difficulties in the social area, especially with peer relationships.
• They easily don’t understand social cues and act impulsively.
• They have limited self-awareness and tend not to recognize positive feedback.
• They tend to play better with younger or older children when their roles are clearly defined.
• While interacting they might ramble and speak out embarrassing things to other students of their age. Areas and time-periods with less structure and can be problematic.

Empowering Underprivileged With Skills

 With the objective of encouraging the underprivileged to acquire skill, several NGOs take the onus to provide training and produce products that will appraise the society about their capability. Such initiatives are taken by the NGOs not only to make them self-reliant but also to develop in them a sense of pride regarding their earnings. The special children are trained to prepare crafts and other marketable items which prove to be good learning for them and moreover these hand-made products have good value in the market. 

Other medium, which NGOs employ are organizing exhibitions from time to time, where these products are displayed and sold to buyers directly. It not only boosts the confidence of underprivileged but also gives them new hope for the future. Further, it helps them to develop new positive outlook towards life. Moreover, the feeling of financial security makes them feel independent and motivated.
 

Nowadays, buying eco-friendly and hand-made products is the new trend in the market. NGOs can very take advantage of this opportunity and prepare similar products like diyas, torans, bags, cards, gift articles, decorative and household items, gift bags, wrapping paper, kurtis, shoulder bags, wall hangings, cushion covers, etc. Also, other popular products are - drawings, paintings, toys, dolls, presentation articles, consumer goods, food items and other items of common use etc. This way NGOs benefit in spreading awareness for their cause and it also helps in garnering maximum support from the people.
 

NGO Sparsh and its products 

 
One such NGO Sparsh provides an opportunity to the underprivileged to generate their income. Sparsh is dedicated for the empowerment and welfare of all sections of the society- women, children, elderly and especially the physically & mentally challenged.It mainly focuses on empowering the underprivileged with the necessary skills to manage life on their own. However, the thrust area of Sparsh is empowerment of mentally and physically challenged children.

Touch of Heaven and  Love in Wraps are special initiatives of Sparsh, where products especially made by the underprivileged are marketed and the revenue generated helps them to be to self reliant and productive members of the society. Room fresheners, scented candles and gift envelopes are some of the products; carried under these labels. So, whenever you come across these products on the shop shelves, go ahead and pick them up, your small gesture can bring big change in their lives.