Depression in an infant? Seemingly impossible, but in fact encountered - infants may suffer from anaclitic depression (hospitalization). The problem is related to the lack of a mother and may even lead to the death of the child. Anaclitic depression is specific not only because of its completely different symptoms and its treatment.
Anaclitic depressionis also known ashospitalizationorhospital disease . The first mentions of anaclitic depression appeared as early as 1897, but the term was popularized only almost 50 years later, in 1945, by the psychotherapist Rene Spitz.
The simplest way to say is that the cause of anaclitic depression in children is their lack of contact with their mother. This situation may occur in various ways - a child may be placed in an orphanage, become ill and hospitalized for a longer period of time, or may be left alone due to the mother's death. The development of anaclitic depression is influenced by the fact that the child does not meet his / her needs in terms of contact with the parent. The period of the first year of life is one of the key stages in the proper development of a child. Physiologically, at this time, the mother not only provides the offspring with food, but also provides (or at least should provide) the necessary emotional bond.
There are specific periods in a young child's emotional development. The first of them lasts up to 6 months of age and it is called period of symbiosis. During it, the child especially requires the closeness of the mother, who will provide him with the necessary care. The second period is the so-called period of separation-individualization. It occurs during the next six months of the baby's life and during this period the baby should gradually become independent from the mother.
It is worth mentioning that in the period of separation-individualization, problems can be caused by both the lack of attention on the part of the mother and … its excess. Lack of contact with the parent may lead to the occurrence of anaclitic depression, while excessive attention may be the reason for the future development of disorders called separation anxiety in the child.
Symptoms of anaclitic depression (hospitalization)
Anaclitic depression isa very specific type of depressive disorder: it is difficult to tell from an infant that it is sad or significantly depressed. Various problems arise in the course of hospitalization: a child may become lethargic, seem lethargic, and in addition, the child may also… not cry. A child suffering from a hospital disease may also be characterized by significantly impaired mobility, in addition, the toddler's anxiety may be noticeable. Appetite disorders are also associated with anaclitic depression - their manifestation may be that the child's body weight will not increase properly.
Anaclitic depression is not a trivial problem - a consequence of its occurrence may be the increased susceptibility of a child to diseases typical for this age (e.g. an increase in the incidence of infections in a child). Hospitality can also lead to significant complications that can have later repercussions on the patient's entire future life. This type of depression may result in a delay in the psychomotor development of the child, and also lead to the fact that the child will have much less interaction with his environment.
Worth knowingAnaclitic depression: different problem in children, different in adults
Hospitality is a typical problem for children, however, you can also come across information about adult anaclitic depression in the literature. However, in the case of the older group of patients, the problem is related to completely different difficulties.
Anaclitic depression is sometimes spoken of in adults who experience difficulty forming relationships with other people. The problem in this case is that isolating from certain people - e.g. from the spouse due to his delegation - leads to considerable difficulties in normal functioning. An adult patient experiencing hospitalization, when separated from a very close person, may struggle with a feeling of helplessness, significant weakness or a feeling of complete loss of control. Anaclitic depression in adults somewhat resembles those problems that occur in the course of separation anxiety in adult patients.
How to overcome anaclitic depression in a child?
In anaclitic depression, the remedy for children is what children lack, which is contact with the mother or with someone who will replace her mother. Interestingly, scientists dealing with anaclitic depression have noticed that this problem occurs less frequently in less equipped hospitals, where, for example, there are no incubators. This situation could be explained by the fact that in such institutions children have more contact with the midwives caring for them (who in this waythey sort of replace their contact that would normally be provided by their mother.)
If a child who has suffered from hospitalization (e.g. as a result of a long stay in hospital) returns to the care of the mother, the symptoms of anaclitic depression may disappear even after a few weeks. It is much worse with other children, e.g. orphans and placed in an orphanage. In extreme cases, such a child may even die. In other hospitalized patients, the problem can lead to complications that will persist throughout the patient's life. The consequence of experiencing anaclitic depression may be both impaired creation of emotional relationships with other people in adulthood and an increased risk of developing other mental disorders in the future, such as full-blown depression or anxiety disorders.