Review of what’s been covered and your feedback on the course

This final week we focussed on how parents can look after themselves, as well as offering strategies to aid effective communication both within the family and outside of it, such as in school. We also looked at problem solving and how you can support a young person with a focused problem-solving approach. We then discussed monitoring progress and warning signs to look out for which can indicate a young person is experiencing difficulties again.

In this Step we also want to highlight the key messages from the previous weeks:

Week 1: We looked at what it’s like to be a young person with depression, and how depression differs from more ‘normal’ low mood. We heard from young people and parents, as well as frontline staff, and thought about how useful conversations to have both within the home, and outside of it (when seeking help). We will be thinking about the main causes of depression and how taking a psychological approach can be helpful in terms of understanding symptoms and guiding treatment.

Week 2: We’ve explored how getting back to basics can help to support young people, and play a role in improving their mood. We discussed healthy living, specifically, sleep, nutrition and physical activity and how we can help young people to adopt healthier habits.

Week 3: We focussed on behaviour and the cycles that young people can get stuck in that keep depression going. We introduced you to a therapeutic technique that focuses on changing behaviour- Behavioural Activation (commonly referred to as ‘BA’).  We also looked at how parents and professionals can help encourage teenagers into more helpful, positive cycles of behaviour, and the ways our own behaviour can be useful in this.

Week 4: We thought about why the types of thoughts that young people have are important and how these can contribute to difficulties in depression. We discussed ‘thinking errors’ and how thoughts can be challenged in therapy.

Your thoughts and feedback on the course as a whole

We’d like to hear your thoughts on ’Depression and Low Mood and Young People’. Different people may take different things from the course, and we’d be interested to hear what you in particular will take from the course as a whole.

You can post your comments in the discussion below and you can ‘Like’ and reply to other learners’ comments. If you’re mentioning the course on social media you can follow us on Twitter and Facebook and remember to tag comments with #FLTeenDepression.

Resources

See below for a list of relevant resources used in this final Week. We’ll provide a comprehensive list of all resources and further reading which can be downloaded in the next Step.

Articles

• Children’s mental health is parents’ top concern Mental Health Today

Books

• Am I Depressed And What Can I Do About It? by Reynolds, S. & Parkinson, M. (London: Robinson, 2015). A CBT self-help guide for teenagers experiencing low mood and depression.
• Teenage Depression: A CBT Guide For Parents by Parkinson, M. & Reynolds, S. (London: Robinson, 2015). Help your child beat their low mood. An indispensable guide for parents of a depressed teenager.

Research

• Armitage S, Parkinson M, Halligan S, Reynolds, S. (2020). Mothers’ Experiences of Having an Adolescent Child with Depression: An interpretative phenomenological analysis. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 29:16. pp. 17-1629.
• Gunlicks, M.L., & Weissman, M.M. (2008). Change in Child Psychopathology With Improvement in Parental Depression: A Systematic Review. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 47:4. pp. 379-389. Please note this journal article is behind a pay wall.
• Stapley, E., Midgley, N., & Target, M. (2015). The Experience of Being the Parent of an Adolescent with a Diagnosis of Depression. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 25 (2) pp. 618-630. Please note this journal article is behind a pay wall.

Websites

• The Compassionate Mind Foundation Compassionate Mind offers information and useful resources promoting wellbeing.
• Association for Young People’s Health AYPH brings together professionals and organisations working to improve young people’s health and wellbeing.
• British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP)
  Organisation providing information about CBT and accreditation of CBT therapists. Register of practising therapists in your area.
• Health & Care Professions Council A regulator of health and care professionals.
• British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy BACP’s primary purpose is to support counsellors and help them better serve their clients.