There isn't one single "youngest" person recorded with depression, as it can appear very early, with some clinical studies identifying depressive symptoms in children as young as age 3, though it's hard to diagnose reliably before preschool, with some cases like a 5-year-old with comorbid anorexia and depression documented, but famous cases exist, like singer Lena Zavaroni, who struggled from a young age.
A growing body of empirical data supports the existence of clinically significant depression during early childhood, as young as age 3. The available data can guide us in distinguishing depression from other early-onset disorders during the preschool period.
Emotional disorders
Depression is estimated to occur among 1.3% of adolescents aged 10–14 years, and 3.4% of 15–19-year-olds (1). Depression and anxiety share some of the same symptoms, including rapid and unexpected changes in mood.
Depression in teens (ages 13-17) is a serious medical illness. It's more than just a feeling of being sad or "blue" for a few days. It is an intense feeling of sadness, hopelessness, and anger or frustration that lasts much longer. These feelings make it hard for you to function normally and do your usual activities.
There's no single cause of depression. It can occur for a variety of reasons and it has many different triggers. For some people, an upsetting or stressful life event, such as bereavement, divorce, illness, redundancy and job or money worries, can be the cause. Different causes can often combine to trigger depression.
Emotional changes
Feelings of sadness, depression, and irritability are common in teenage boys as they transition to adulthood. Although these emotions are due to puberty, adolescents can often take out their feelings on family members or peers.
Treatment is often needed. Once you've had an episode of depression, you are at risk of having more throughout life. If you don't get treatment, depression can happen more often and be more serious.
Daly(2) found that rates of depression increased from 2009 to 2019 among both girls and boys, but the percentage change was larger for girls (12.0%) than boys (3.7%), so that the sex difference in adolescent depression increased over time.
Major life changes can cause stress. Illness, accidents, bullying or abuse can have a huge effect on stress levels. Family changes, such as divorce or the death of a loved one, can also cause stress as teens try to work out how to express their feelings.
During a depressive episode, a person experiences a depressed mood (feeling sad, irritable, empty). They may feel a loss of pleasure or interest in activities. A depressive episode is different from regular mood fluctuations. They last most of the day, nearly every day, for at least two weeks.
Minor depression is defined by fewer symptoms than major depression, and tends to have shorter episodes, less comorbidity, less psychosocial and physical impairment, and fewer recurrences [1,2,4].
Which mental disorders have the earliest onset?
There's no single cause of depression. It can occur for a variety of reasons and it has many different triggers. For some people, an upsetting or stressful life event, such as bereavement, divorce, illness, redundancy and job or money worries, can be the cause. Different causes can often combine to trigger depression.
About 7 in 100,000 children die of suicide. More than 80% of children who attempt suicide are not identified by pediatricians in a routine visit months before the suicide attempt. Hence, depression and suicide in children are major global public health problems.
Depression is sometimes referred to as a silent killer
It's more than just sadness or having bad day. It's a crippling and sometimes life- threatening illness that can pull people into despair and change their entire outlook on life.
If you think depression, schizophrenia, or bipolar disorder are the mental illnesses most commonly linked to an early death, you're wrong. Eating disorders—including anorexia nervosa, bulimia, and binge eating— are the most lethal mental health conditions, according to research in Current Psychiatry Reports.
50% of mental health problems are established by age 14 and 75% by age 24.
Clinical depression is the more-severe form of depression, also known as major depression or major depressive disorder. It isn't the same as depression caused by a loss, such as the death of a loved one, or a medical condition, such as a thyroid disorder.
Considerable evidence links the “Big Five” personality traits (neuroticism, extroversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and openness) with depression.
Tips for how to live a normal life with depression.
If you are concerned, speak with your family physician or pediatrician. They may be able to help or will be able to refer you to a child and adolescent psychiatrist who is trained to evaluate, diagnose, and treat children with emotional and behavior problems.
A total of 167,783 adolescents aged 12 to 17 years were assessed annually using national surveys from 2009 to 2019. Rates of adolescent depression increased from 8.1% in 2009 to 15.8% in 2019, a relatively larger increase than reported in a previous examination in the NSDUH from 2005 to 2014(3).
Schizophrenia is not often found in children younger than age 12. It's also hard to spot in the early stages. Often, the psychotic symptoms start in the middle to late teen years. Slightly more boys develop it in childhood.
An acute change in mood that persists for weeks or is associated with thoughts of self-harm should not be ignored. In some cases, it may constitute an emergency. Depressed mood, whether from a major depressive episode, or in the context of another problem, can become an emergency when there are thoughts of suicide.
You may have heard people say, for example, that they experience both anxiety and depression. Conditions – like anxiety disorders, ADHD, heart disease, chronic pain, or diabetes – may affect or be affected by both the physical and emotional effects of depression.