Recognising anxiety and depression as parents

Have you ever felt guilty that your emotional or mental state could be affecting your children?

I confess that I, without knowing it, I have lived for a long time in a state of anxiety and depression, derived from different traumatic episodes in my life.

By the time I realized it (with therapy), many years of my motherhood had passed and I began to feel guilty for everything that I had inadvertently put my children through, routines full of stress, yelling and intolerance on my part.

If you are living or have experienced something similar, do not feel guilty! There is a lot of learning behind this hard experience. In my case, having experienced the symptoms of anxiety and depression first-hand, I was able to recognize the signs in my own daughter and I was able to help her in time!

If you live or have lived anxiety, you know that:

• You get into your thoughts and stop interacting with others
• You isolate yourself
• You have difficulty falling or staying asleep
• You have changes in your diet
• You have many fears and worries
• You have difficulty paying attention and concentrating
• You have physical symptoms such as stomach, neck and head pain, muscle fatigue, palpitations and even shortness of breath.

And if you live or lived depression you know that:

• You are sensitive and irritable most of the time
• You feel misunderstood
• You have changes in your diet
• There are times when you don’t want to get up
• You don’t want to socialize
• You stop enjoying the things you used to enjoy
• You feel helpless or hopeless
• You may have self-destructive behaviours

Knowing how to recognize these symptoms is vital to realize that you or your child needs external support to be able to overcome this state of mind.

I invite you to take these recommendations with the necessary openness to be able to work preventively on your mental health and that of your children.

Written by Alejandra Brañez – Fundacion Heroe, Bolivia